Can't Buy Me Love
by liliesandantlers
Summary: James Potter has it all: the best friends a guy could ask for, all the money in the world, a spot on Gryffindor's Quidditch team, and more. But there's one thing he doesn't have, and it's something he can't buy: Lily Evans
1. Spats in the Library and OWLs

**Can't Buy Me Love**

By: liliesandantlers

 **Chapter 1: Spats in the Library and O.W.L.s**

* * *

"Would you look at Potter over there? I'm surprised his body can still support the weight of his big head." Lily whispered to her friends, Delphine Westwood and Cassandra Sweetwater, who snickered and shook their heads. Nothing got under Lily Evans's skin like James Potter.

"I mean, look at him tossing around that stupid snitch. This is the library, not the Quidditch pitch." Lily whispered vehemently. "Not to mention Eleanor and Marissa won't shut up," she added as an afterthought, glaring daggers into the backs of the two giggling Hufflepuffs' heads.

Across the library, James Potter sat at a large table with his three best friends and two girls who had rushed to join the boys as soon as they had sauntered loudly into the library just a half hour before. Of course, the group was getting no real work done, despite James promising Remus they'd be as diligent as Ravenclaws and as quiet as church mice. Remus had known it was too good to be true, but it was nearly impossible to say no to James.

Presently, the group, known only to themselves and a select few as the Marauders, were engaging in an increasingly loud game of Exploding Snap. Well, at least James and Sirius were. Remus had his Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook open, attempting to look over the material for the upcoming O.W.L., but he stole glances towards the game every several seconds, unable to resist watching what was sure to be a huge blow up when either James or Sirius lost. They were both rotten losers. Peter hadn't had any intention of studying to begin with, so he was quite content to watch the game and cheer on his friends. Eleanor and Marissa had rushed to join the boys as soon as they'd walked in, and the latter hadn't refused their company. They needed an audience, obviously.

"Shit!" Sirius swore as James won the game. "You cheated! I swear you did! He cheated didn't he, Wormy?" Sirius asked, nudging his friend roughly.

Peter looked panicked, his mind waging a war between siding with James or Sirius. As he started to mumble a response, James cut him off.

"Troll shit! I won fair and square, Padfoot! Unlike you, some of us were born with both good looks _and_ talent!" James joked, ruffling his unkempt hair as he snuck a quick glance in the direction of a certain redhead across the room.

"Now I know you couldn't possibly be addressing _me_." Sirius replied, feigning a look of hurt and shock. "For I possess both good looks and talent in unlawfully large quantities. Perhaps you were talking to Moony or Wormtail."

"Hey!" Peter scoffed indignantly.

"Let's not forget about your unwavering loyalty to your friends," Remus replied sarcastically, still staring at the page in front of him, rereading the same sentence for the eighth time in a row. The group laughed as Sirius punched the young werewolf's shoulder.

"Ow!" Remus shouted, rubbing the spot where Sirius's fist had been only a moment before. "Must you always resort to physical violence, Padfoot?"

The two began to bicker back and forth, while Eleanor and Marissa busied themselves with making eyes at James, who had begun to toss around the golden snitch again.

At her own table, Lily was absolutely fuming. How dare Potter drag his friends to the library just to play silly card games and make noise while people who actually cared about their futures studied for what could only be described as the most important exams up to this point in their academic careers. Well, Lily certainly wasn't going to take it.

"That's it! If no one else is going to say anything, I will." Lily huffed as she stood from her table and marched over to where the Marauders were sitting. James noticed the redhead get up, and he smirked to himself as she walked towards him, hands on hips, brows furrowed.

"Excuse me, Potter." Lily said coolly to James when she reached him. He was leaned back in his chair, feet on the table in front of him, looking far too pleased with himself for Lily's liking. She despised that smirk he always wore when she was in his presence. It was as if he actually enjoyed annoying her.

"Evans! Lovely of you to join us! You're looking gorgeous today, you know that? Have you come to tell me you've changed your mind about our Hogsmeade date?" James asked with a cheeky smile as he continued to toss around the golden snitch.

"My answer has been the same for two years, Potter. No!" Lily snapped. She took a deep breathe and smoothed out her wild red hair as she tried to regain her composure, James grinning from ear to ear. "I came over here to ask you to kindly leave the library because you're making an absurd amount of noise, and unlike you, some of us actually care about our futures and are trying to study for the O.W.L.s."

It was meant to be an insult, but James was enjoying watching Lily get worked up far to much to be offended by the implication of her words.

"Oh come on, Evans. I don't need to study for those silly exams." James replied with a casual roll of the eyes that he knew would drive Lily mad. "I'm great at Defense Against the Dark Arts, and even if I weren't, I'd still have a perfectly fine future. I'm going to take over my dad's company, you know." James added as he caught the snitch effortlessly.

"Sleekeazy's Hair Potion? Yes, I've heard of it. Perhaps you should actually try some, Potter. Maybe if your stupid hair wasn't so messy all the time, you wouldn't feel the need to run your fingers through it every two seconds like some sort of chimp." Lily shot back, crossing her arms with a huff. If there was one thing that annoyed Lily more than James's smirk, it was his perpetually unruly hair.

"You think my hair is stupid? Now that's not very nice! I don't think your hair is stupid. I actually think your hair is very, very smart," James teased. Lily was about to reply when he cut her off. "Lads, I believe Miss Evans wants us to leave, so I suppose we must be off. We'd hate to get on her bad side, if she even has one. I've yet to find it." James said as he stood up, looking Lily up and down.

He gestured for his friends to follow him and shooed off Eleanor and Marissa, who glared at Lily for interrupting their time with the cutest boys in Fifth Year.

"You're absolutely disgusting, Potter!" Lily shouted as James and the rest of the Marauders strutted out of the library. "And don't worry, you've been on my bad side for years!"

James was almost out the door, but he turned around, unable to resist having the last word.

"You know, Evans," he began, a twinkle in his eye and a smile playing on his lips, "You may want to keep your voice down. I've heard you're supposed to be quiet in the library. People have exams to study for."

And with a wink and a final ruffle of his hair, James strutted into the corridor outside.

If Lily had been fuming before, she was positively livid now. After several moments of staring at James's retreating figure, mouth hanging open, Lily let out a loud "Ugh!", stamped her foot, and marched back to the table where her two best friends were trying and failing to contain their laughter.

"You two think this is funny?" Lily hissed, taking a seat and trying to ignore the stares she was receiving from students who had just witnessed her public spat with James.

"No, no!" Cassandra assured her quickly, even though her soft, melodic giggles were still trickling out between each word.

"Are you kidding me? That was hilarious!" Delphine roared as she clutched her stomach from laughter.

"Good to know I have the support of you two when Potter is being an arse." Lily shot back coolly, glaring at her fellow Gryffindors.

Cassandra and Delphine, or Cassie and Della to anyone who knew them well, had been Lily's closest friends, apart from Severus, since starting Hogwarts. The three met after all getting sorted into Gryffindor and had been inseparable since.

Della, a boisterous half-blood and chaser for the house Quidditch team, never failed to let everyone know what was on her mind. She didn't have much of a filter, but no one seemed to mind because she was so beautiful. Her muggle mother had introduced her to the music of Sonny and Cher as a little girl, and she had been obsessed with the female half of the duo ever since, drenching her long, dark hair in James Potter's father's Sleekeazy Hair Potion to achieve Cher's silky smooth look. Lily had been a bit unsure of Della when they first met as eleven-year-olds, but the half-blood quickly proved her worth as a friend, standing up to anyone and everyone who dared to say anything about her new friend, Lily Evan's blood status.

Cassie, on the other hand, could not have been more unlike Della if she tried. A pure-blood witch, Cassandra Sweetwater reminded Lily of the fairytale princesses her mother used to read her stories about as a child. Tall and graceful, with long blonde hair and bright blue eyes, Cassie was a quiet, sweet girl with an affinity for taking care of magical creatures, just like her family before her, who had been advocates for the protection of unicorns for centuries. Lily had taken to Cassie immediately, finding her quiet presence calming.

"Oh hush! You know we'll always have your back, Lils." Cassie replied, placing her hand on Lily's and giving her a sweet smile.

"Thanks, Cass." Lily whispered, still trying to compose herself after her unpleasant run in with Potter. Cassie nudged Della, who was still laughing. The dark haired girl quickly covered up the last of her giggles with highly unbelievable coughing.

"Yeah, what Cassie said." Della added hastily, shooting Lily an apologetic look.

The redhead sighed and shook her head, giving her friend an exasperated smile. She couldn't stay mad at Della and Cassie for long. Plus, it wasn't even them she was mad at: it was Potter. Horrible, up-to-no-good, spoiled, arrogant Potter. The boy all the other girls in school fawned over incessantly. The boy all the other boys wanted to be like. Hell, even the professors seemed to think he was special, although Lily couldn't possibly imagine why. What's so great about a rich kid who bullies others just because they belong to the "wrong house". Lily had a feeling it had to do with the rich part. Well, perhaps everyone else at Hogwarts could be bought by James Potter, but Lily Evans couldn't. Every galleon at Gringotts couldn't convince Lily to go on a date with him. He was an insufferable prat and that's all there was to it.

"It's okay. I'm not mad at you two. Potter just makes me so angry sometimes. I mean, I'm usually perfectly levelheaded and reasonable, but that arrogant toerag just irks me to no end." Lily vented with a sigh, looking down at her Defense Against the Dark Arts book, fearing her trip to the library was in vain.

Lily had been trying to get in some much-needed review before her next O.W.L. when Potter had burst in with his posse, breaking her focus and ruining any chance of her getting work done. Just thinking about his blatant disregard for everyone else in the library made her blood boil.

"Can you imagine the nerve of him?" she asked, beginning to get worked up again. "'You should keep your voice down. People have exams to study for'," Lily said, mimicking the way James had thrown her words back in her face. "Who does he think he is? Telling _me_ to be quiet and respectful when _he_ 's the one who hosted his own Exploding Snap tournament for thirty minutes!"

Lily could feel the heat rising to her cheeks as her fists curled up into little balls. It drove her mad the way Potter could get a rise out of her like this when he wasn't even around. Della and Cassie stared at their friend with concern before meeting each other's eyes, both realizing that something needed to be done quickly to prevent a full-blown Lily Evans meltdown.

"Alright, I think that's enough studying for now," Della said hastily as she stood up and grabbed her things from the table. Lily began to protest, but the chaser quickly shut her down. "You know the material, Lily. We all do. And besides, we need a break." she insisted, motioning for Cassie to collect her things.

"I don't know, Della. I still feel like I don't have a very good grasp on lycanthropy yet," Lily replied hesitantly, wanting desperately to get some studying done, if for no other reason than to prove to herself that James Potter couldn't hinder her work ethic. But she could feel her resolve slowly crumbling, and if she was being honest, a break _did_ sound good.

"Oh bullocks, Lily! You could spot a werewolf from a mile away! Now, let's go find a nice spot by the lake. I need to tan," Della insisted, grabbing her two friends by the hand and practically dragging them out of the library.

Lily sighed, but didn't argue, allowing Della and Cassie to lead her down corridor after corridor towards the warmth and sunlight of the grounds. She just hoped Potter and his friends weren't outside. Honestly, Lily didn't know how much more of him she could take. James Potter was absolutely the most vile person she had ever met, and she prayed that one day he would take a hint and leave her alone for good.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Hi, everyone! I'm new to this whole fanfiction thing, and I'm still learning how to publish on this wonderful website, so I appreciate your cooperation while I learn the ropes! Anyway, I adore Lily and James and couldn't help but write this. This fic won't just be about Lily and James, but they will be the central plot point. I've studied what we know as canon from JK and Pottermore about the Marauders' lives at Hogwarts, and based on what I've learned, I want to try to write an (mostly) accurate and interesting account of what I believe transpired at Hogwarts when the Marauders and Lily Evans called it home. If not already obvious, this story does begin at the end of Fifth Year (i.e. Snape's Worst Memory) and hopefully it will chronicle the development of Lily and James' chaotic relationship up until graduation, if not a little past that point. It's gonna be a little slowburn because of the timeline, but I promise I will try to make it as interesting and eventually, rewarding as possible! Rated T for right now, but will change rating if need arises later. Please Review! xoxo


	2. Oversleeping and Dueling Toast

**Can't Buy Me Love**

By: liliesandantlers

 **Chapter 2: Oversleeping and Dueling Toast**

* * *

"Lily, I'm not saying you can't go, I merely _suggesting_ that you _shouldn't_ ," Della clarified, an annoyed edge to her voice as she flipped through the pages of _Witch Weekly_ on her bed.

She and Lily were arguing again about Severus. Della would never understand what her friend saw in that greasy, no-good, dark-arts-loving crow, but she supposed if anyone could see the good in him, it was Lily.

Lily loved taking in strays.

"And why shouldn't I go? We're just going to be doing some harmless studying in the library," Lily shot back, temper beginning to flare, from her spot on her bed.

She appreciated her friend's concern, but she was getting rather tired of the same old "Severus is a bad influence" lecture. Della hardly even knew him. Lily, on the other hand, had been best friends with him for years. She probably knew him better than anyone.

"Oh please, Lily, there is nothing harmless about him. He is in Slytherin after all," Della insisted, rolling her eyes as she read a particularly interesting article about easy-to-make love potions.

Across the room, Cassie sat quietly at her desk, pretending to study while she silently contemplated whether or not she should get involved in the burgeoning argument. She was leaning heavily towards the _no chance in hell_ option.

"Please don't start with that Slytherin nonsense again!" Lily groaned as she gathered a quill and several textbooks into her bag. "Just because Sev is in that house, doesn't mean he fancies the dark arts, and you shouldn't assume that all Slytherins are rotten! You sound just like Potter!" Lily huffed, growing more irritated by the minute.

She hated when her fellow Gryffindors picked on Severus for being in Slytherin. He couldn't help it! It's not like he chose to be put there. No one chooses where they get sorted. And she couldn't stand the bad reputation Slytherins received. Sure, was there some truth to the stigma? Perhaps. Most dark wizards and witches _were_ in fact from Slytherin, but that didn't mean that everyone who was sorted there was destined to turn evil. Lily knew Sev would never do anything to hurt another person… except for Potter, but that was only ever out of self defense, and that four-eyed git always had it coming!

"As much as you may hate to hear it, Lily, I think James is right about Severus," Della said hesitantly, slowly looking up from her magazine into the horrified face of her best friend. "Severus fancies the dark arts, and everyone knows it. This isn't about some stupid stereotype or house rivalry. He hangs out with Mulciber and Avery all the time, and I've heard that those two have already been in contact with You-Know-Who."

Lily tensed up at the mention of the so-called "Dark Lord". Could Mulciber and Avery really be in contact with him? And if they were… could that mean Sev was as well? Lily shook her head and tried to banish away the scary thought that her best friend could actually be communicating with a terrorist whose primary target was muggleborns like herself. She just couldn't bring herself to believe that could be true.

"Oh, bullocks! You think You-Know-Who wants anything to do with a couple of school bullies?" Lily replied, forcing out a weak laugh to try to lighten the mood. "It's just gossip, Dell. And even if that were true, which I don't think it is, that doesn't mean Severus is like them. They just happen to be roommates. I don't even think they're all that good of friends."

Even as she said it, Lily knew how lame and unconvincing she sounded.

Della sighed and threw her magazine down beside her, sitting up to look at Lily more directly. She loved her fiery friend dearly, but damnit she could be stubborn at times!

"Lily, I'm worried about you… and your safety," she said slowly, looking Lily right in the eyes so she would know she meant business. When Lily opened her mouth to protest, Della cut her off. "The Slytherins, especially Mulciber and Avery, have always been prats. You can't deny that. When we were little, they were just mean, but now…" Della hesitated, unsure of how her best friend was going to take what she had to say next, "Now they're getting dangerous. They're driven by pride of their blood status and prejudice towards people they think are inferior to them. People like you." Della said quietly, unable at this point to continue looking Lily in the eyes. "I'm just worried about you."

"That makes two of us."

Both Lily and Della looked up to meet the concerned eyes of their friend at the desk. Cassie hadn't wanted to get involved; she loathed arguments. But this was important. This was about Lily's safety. And Cassie would do anything to protect her friends.

"I think Della is right, Lils. I don't think that hanging out with Severus is safe anymore. I know he's your oldest friend, but I just don't trust him," the blonde said, as delicately as she could manage while still sounding firm.

To this, Lily wasn't quite sure how to respond. Cassie didn't often get involved in Lily and Della's arguments, so she must've been serious about her concerns. But that didn't change how Lily felt about Sev. While she appreciated her friends' worry for her, she just couldn't understand how they could be so blind as to think that Sev was the bad guy. He had never been anything but wonderful to Lily in all the years she'd known him. He wasn't who Della and Cassie thought he was.

"Look you two, I appreciate your concern, but I know what I'm doing. Sev would never hurt me. He's not prejudice, and he would never treat me differently because of my blood status," Lily insisted, hopping off her bed and slinging her bag onto her shoulder. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go study with an old friend."

And with that, Lily was out the door, taking the dormitory stairs two at a time just in case Della or Cassie tried to come after her. As she climbed out the portrait hole, she hoped against hope that what she had said about Severus was true.

It had to be, right?

* * *

James Potter was tired.

He was tired of trying so hard to impress Lily Evans with no success. It was like nothing impressed that girl! No amount of ingenious pranks or perfectly-executed Quidditch maneuvers had any affect on her. She absolutely stumped him. Every other girl in school would come crawling at his beck and call, but not Lily. No, James figured that Lily Evans was more likely to spontaneously transfigure into a hippogriff than to ever grovel over a boy, especially himself.

But why wouldn't she? Why wouldn't she fawn over him? Every other girl in school did. How could they not? At only sixteen years old, he was captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, heir to a multimillion galleon company, and unquestionably one of the best looking guys in school. He was, in his own opinion at least, the whole package.

So why didn't she want him? Why did she seem so hellbent on hating him? Why did she have to publicly embarrass him by turning him down every time he asked her out?

James had been asking himself these questions for years, and he feared he may never get any answers.

The young chaser turned over some of these questions in his mind as he lay on his four poster bed, tossing around his golden snitch as he so often did when he was feeling particularly fidgety. He liked pretending that Lily was the snitch, and that all he had to do to be with her was to catch her. With a loud sigh, he caught the small, golden ball and put it in his pocket.

 _If only it were that easy_.

Across the room, Remus was quizzing Peter before bed for the O.W.L. that would be taking place in the morning, and based on the frustrated grunts coming from the pair, it wasn't going well. James was just rolling over onto his stomach when Sirius looked up from the issue of _PlayWitch_ he was reading.

"Prongs, seriously, what is wrong with you today? You're not going through a dry spell are you?" the young Gryffindor asked, his dark eyes alight with mischief. "Because if you are, I know of a few Ravenclaws in our Potions class who would love to take a ride on the salacious stag," he teased, voice dripping with suggestion as he wagged his eyebrows.

James merely rolled his eyes at his best friend's proposition.

"First of all, never call me the salacious stag ever again. Second of all, no, I am not going through a dry spell," James replied defensively, sitting up and summoning his own copy of the June issue of _PlayWitch_ from his nightstand. "And even if I was, I'd never hook up with a Ravenclaw. Those girls are way too uptight! They'd probably correct your grammar while in the throws of it," James added with a laugh, trying to cheer himself up.

"Yes, I suppose that would put a damper on the mood," Sirius mused, a small smile playing on his lips as his mind filled with dirty thoughts involving a particular few girls from their Potions class.

"But I thought you shagged Wendy Vernell, and _she'_ s a Ravenclaw!" Peter called from across the room, pleased to have an excuse to discuss something other than the best ways to defend oneself against a vampire.

"That was one time! And I was horribly drunk!" James shouted in defense, annoyed that Peter had brought it up. He had been hoping his friends had forgotten about that particular incident.

"Actually, didn't you also snog Felicity Fairweather after that one Quidditch match?" Remus asked, unable to resist joining in on the fun. The werewolf wouldn't usually condone holding James's womanizing ways against him, but anything sounded better than quizzing Peter right now.

"Excellent observation, Moony!" Sirius shouted gleefully, enjoying every minute of watching James squirm. "Must be that remarkable werewolf memory! Ten points to Gryffindor!"

James sighed in defeat, flipping through pages of scantily-dressed witches without really seeing them. "Alright, alright, so I suppose I've had a few encounters with the Ravenclaw girls, but really, they're not my type!" he insisted, his cloudy mood returning to him as he thought about the one girl in school who was his type.

As if he had been reading his best friend's mind, Sirius said, "Ahh right! They're not your type because they don't have red hair, they're not Gryffindors, and their names aren't Lily Evans."

James didn't bother responding, but simply continued to flip through the magazine, pausing every few seconds to make it look like he was actually impressed by what he saw. He knew there was no point in arguing with what Sirius had said. James hadn't exactly kept it a secret that he fancied Lily.

Sirius rolled his eyes when his best friend refused to respond. He hated it when James pouted. He was no fun like that.

"Come on, mate. I'm sorry I brought her up. Look on the bright side, she only yelled at you a little bit in the library yesterday. She yelled at you much more than that last week when you hexed Snivellus in the corridor. You're making progress!" Sirius said lamely, trying and failing to encourage his friend. It was hard to inspire when the subject was as dismal as his best friend's odds with Lily.

James threw down _PlayWitch_ in disgust, unable to continue pretending to read it. He simply wasn't in the mood.

"Don't lie to me, Padfoot. I know I'm not getting anywhere with Lily, but it's not my fault! I try so hard to impress her and where does it get me? Absolutely nowhere! There's just no pleasing that girl!" James exclaimed, nervously running his fingers through his untidy hair.

"Maybe it's just not meant to be," Peter offered from the other side of the room.

The small, mousy Gryffindor had never understood his friend's fascination with Lily. Sure, she was nice and very pretty, but there were so many other girls that threw themselves at James, and Peter couldn't understand why none of them were good enough. Hell, Peter would've been content if just one girl showed interest in him.

"Or maybe you're just not doing the right things to impress her," Remus suggested, genuinely wanting to help his friend. The young werewolf hated seeing James get upset over Lily. He knew that the chaser cared about her far more than he let on. "Try showing her how you really feel."

Sirius looked at his three friends in mock disgust. He couldn't believe how soft they'd gotten, whining about girls and giving each other advice on how to woo them. They were the Marauders, not a bunch of babbling schoolgirls!

"That's it! You lot sound like a couple of Third Years headed to Madam Puddifoot's for a spot of tea! Get ahold of yourselves, mates! We're the Marauders of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and we will not allow some stubborn birds to get us down!" Sirius shouted, throwing down his magazine as he hopped up from his bed. "Prongs, grab the cloak. Moony, grab the map. We're going out!"

"But Padfoot, it's after hours, and we have the Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L. tomorrow!" Remus argued, not wanting to get in trouble with Filch again. McGonagall had looked so disappointed the last time they got caught for sneaking around after dark. She had taken a whole twenty points away.

Sirius shook his head in disbelief. When had his friends turned into a bunch of pansies?

"That's why we have the cloak and the map! What's next, do you want me to owl home and ask for your mummy's permission?" Sirius teased, grabbing the map from Remus's nightstand since he was making no move to.

James had been about to protest as Remus had, but he stopped himself. Maybe this was exactly what he needed: a night of pranking and mischief with his best friends. After all, that's what the Marauders were all about, right?

"Padfoot is right," James said as he hopped off his bed and began to search through his trunk for his father's invisibility cloak. "We need a night of fun! We've earned it, haven't we? What with all this studying we've been doing!" the chaser shouted as he dug deeper through the chest.

"You mean the studying that Peter and I have been doing?" Remus called indignantly from his bed, where he had yet to budge.

"Precisely!" James shouted back as he pulled the cloak out of his trunk. He was feeling better already just looking at the wonderful garment that had assisted them in so many nights of deviance and debauchery. He stood and faced his friends. "Alright, so whose going to be on the receiving end of the Marauder's wands tonight?" he asked, looking into their faces expectantly, each wearing a different expression: Sirius of excitement, Remus of exasperation, and Peter of… well he sort've looked like he needed to go to the bathroom.

Sirius was thrilled he had convinced James to sneak out, and he quickly launched into full-on scheming mode.

"Well, we hit the Hufflepuffs last week when we transfigured their chocolate pudding into mud, and the Ravenclaws will be up all hours of the night studying, so I'd say from a strategic standpoint, our best bet is the Slytherins!" Sirius suggested excitedly, giddy with the prospect of pranking his least favorite house.

"If only you could be this passionate about your schoolwork!" Remus said with a sigh, as he reluctantly climbed out of bed and slid on his slippers. Who was he kidding, thinking he could somehow stop Sirius Black and James Potter from sneaking out after dark.

Sirius clapped his werewolf friend on the back and handed him the map. "Passion is reserved for two things, Moony: pranking and shagging!" he said, slipping on his own shoes. "Now, Peter, go to the bathroom and then we'll be off!"

"But I don't _need_ to go to the bathroom!" Peter insisted, hopping off his bed to congregate with his friends by the dormitory door.

"Yes, you do. You have that look on your face that you always get when you need to pee! Now, go so we can leave. We're wasting precious pranking time here!" Sirius said as he shooed Peter off towards the lavatory.

The dark haired boy had lost count of the number of times his mousy friend had had to sneak off to use the loo while they were out after hours, and he wasn't about to let it happen again.

Once Peter had returned from the lavatory, the Marauders were off, huddled tightly under James's invisibility cloak, determined to cause as much trouble as they could for the unsuspecting Slytherins.

* * *

As Lily scrambled around the bathroom, attempting to brush her teeth and comb her hair at the same time, she couldn't help but be reminded of the chickens she had once seen as a little girl when she had visited family friends who lived on a farm outside of Cokeworth. The chickens had been flitting around the barnyard in every which way, looking both like they had somewhere they desperately needed to be and also like they had no idea where they were going.

Lily looked a bit like that too.

Upon waking only a mere six minutes before, the redhead had discovered, to her shock, that her dormitory was completely deserted. She had overslept. After checking the clock on her nightstand and realizing that she still had time to eat a quick breakfast and make it to the exam if she hurried, Lily had thrown off her scarlet bedsheets and made a mad dash towards the bathroom.

Once her teeth were brushed and her hair was slightly more tame, Lily ran back into her room to throw on her school clothes and grab her bag, and then she was off, running through the corridors like some nervous First Year who was late to class.

The clambering prefect nearly knocked over several students as she rushed into the Great Hall to sit with her friends, who were finishing up their breakfast at the Gryffindor table. Della nearly spit out her pumpkin juice when she saw the look on Lily's face as the latter plopped into the seat across from her angrily.

"Where have you been? The teachers are about to start clearing students out so they can summon the exam desks," Cassie asked worryingly as she quickly filled up a plate of food and pushed it towards her fuming friend beside her.

Lily accepted the plate with a scowl and hungrily began munching on a piece of turkey bacon.

"Where have I been? Asleep! You two-" she accused, gesturing at Della and Cassie with the piece of breakfast meat in her hand, "didn't wake me up! How could you just let me sleep? I was going to get up early this morning to do some last minute review!" the Fifth Year cried, reaching over Cassie to grab the pitcher of coffee in the center of the table. Lily needed something stronger than pumpkin juice this morning.

Della and Cassie looked perplexed at their friend's outburst.

"Wait, you mean to tell me that all this time you've been asleep? We thought you were in the library or something!" Della insisted as she munched on the last bit of her toast.

"How could you think I was in the library? I was laying in bed!" Lily howled.

"You must have been under the covers because we didn't see you," Cassie explained gently, hoping to defuse the situation. Lily was one of the kindest witches she had ever met, but her friend's fiery temper did flare every once in a while, especially in stressful situations.

Lily took a deep breath and tried to collect her thoughts. She knew she shouldn't be taking out her frustration on her friends. This wasn't their fault. Lily was annoyed at _herself_ for oversleeping because she had been up late the night before studying with Sev in the library. This was Lily's fault and her fault alone.

The Gryffindor took a long sip of coffee and willed herself to relax. She had made it to breakfast with enough time to get some food into her system, and she hadn't missed the exam.

"You're right, this isn't your fault. I'm sorry," Lily began, feeling guilty for the way she had accused her friends of knowingly letting her oversleep. They would've never done something like that. They knew how important the O.W.L.s were to Lily. "I guess I'm just nervous for the exam. Our results determine so much of what we can study from now on," she said, looking around at the other Fifth Years in the Great Hall, wondering if they were as anxious as she was.

Della and Cassie nodded knowingly, understanding how Lily was feeling. These _were_ important exams, and Lily, more than others, put a lot of pressure on herself to succeed. She always got a bit testy when exams rolled around.

"It's okay, we get it," Della replied, offering her best friend a small smile. "But you don't need to worry. You're going to do brilliantly as always," the raven-haired girl insisted, pushing her now-empty plate towards the center of the table.

Della wished she could do as well at school as Lily and Cassie did, but after years of barely scrapping by to make a passing grade in most of her classes, she had come to accept that academics just weren't her strong suit.

Lily recognized the wistful look in her best friend's eyes, and reminded herself that she shouldn't be complaining about the O.W.L.s. She had always received good grades, and these exams probably wouldn't be any different. Della, on the other hand, had never been a good test-taker, and Lily expressing her concerns probably wasn't easing the anxiety that her friend was feeling.

With an encouraging smile, the redhead placed her hand on Della's and gave it a small squeeze. "And you're going to do brilliantly too, Dell," Lily said, willing it to be true.

She couldn't imagine not having her best friend in Defense Against the Dark Arts with her anymore. With Della gone, who would be left to tell Potter to sod off when he started annoying Lily too much?

As if the mere thought of Potter evoked trouble, a sudden uproar arose from the Slytherin table, where students began shouting as pieces of toast grew arms and legs and began to grab butter knives and forks to fend off anyone who dared to take a bite out of them. While the Slytherins were occupied running from their table out of fear of being skewered, the rest of the Great Hall erupted with laughter, some students even cheering on the animated slices of bread.

Down on the other end of the Gryffindor table, James and Sirius and Peter stood up in their seats and took a bow, James grabbing Remus by his shirt collar and forcing him to stand up as well. The timid boy bowed reluctantly as everyone in the Great Hall whooped and hollered and applauded the efforts of the group. Well, everyone except for Lily, who watched sadly as Severus got chased out of the room by a particularly nasty piece of toast.

Even the teachers seemed to be enjoying the spectacle, although they'd never admit it. Dumbledore simply chuckled to himself before standing up from his seat at the front of the Great Hall.

"Silence, students, silence!" the Headmaster bellowed, raising his hands to get everyone's attention.

With a single snap of his long fingers, Dumbledore returned the pieces of toast to their normal state, although some Slytherins still eyed the bread suspiciously. Eventually, everyone quieted down, and the Marauders returned to their seats, James smiling up at his Headmaster, who, in return, gave his pupil a small wink.

"If all students would please finish up their breakfast and head to class, the teachers and I will prepare the Great Hall for the O.W.L.s that will be taking place shortly. Fifth Years please remain in the corridor outside until we announce it's time for testing to take place. All other students, please remain quiet as you leave to take your own exams! Now hop to it!" Dumbledore announced, the Great Hall immediately erupting with noise once again as students pushed their empty plates away from them and headed off to class with their friends, no doubt discussing the prank James Potter and his crew had played on Slytherin house.

As Lily stood up and waited for Cassie and Della to collect their bags, she heard a most unwelcome voice calling to her from further down the table.

"Evans! Oi, Evans!" James called, trying to get Lily's attention over the dull roar of students making their way into the corridor outside.

Unable to assure herself that she wouldn't hex Potter if he caught up to her, Lily shouted a short, "See you outside!" to her friends and bolted towards the entrance of the Great Hall, weaving her way through the mass of students, desperately trying to avoid a certain messy-haired boy.

She made it into the corridor outside and was beginning to think she'd lost him, when suddenly a lean, muscular arm was tossed casually over her shoulder.

"Blimey! You're faster than you look, Evans!" James said cheekily, as Lily shoved his arm off of her and scuttled a few feet away from him.

"Sod off, Potter! What do you want?" Lily replied coldly, glaring at James as she remembered the scared look on Sev's face as he had been chased out of the Great Hall by a butter-knife-wielding piece of toast.

The young chaser tried not to look bothered by Lily's hostility, and ran his fingers through his already-messy black hair in an attempt to look cool.

"The lads and I just wanted to know if you liked our little joke," James explained, gesturing to his friends who had joined them.

"No, I didn't actually. I thought it was immature and inconsiderate!" Lily replied, crossing her arms. Her green eyes glared daggers into James's hazel ones. "And you, Remus-" Lily began, shifting her gaze from the bespectacled boy in front of her to the prefect in the back, "I expect better from you! Why do you let this prat drag you into all this nonsense?" she asked, shaking her head with disapproval.

Remus began to mutter an excuse when James cut him off.

"Remus does not allow me to drag him into anything! He happens to just enjoy having fun with us!" the Quidditch captain retorted, crossing his own arms to match Lily's.

"Well, Remus is a prefect, and as such, has certain responsibilities to this school to put an end to dangerous highjinks like what you lot just pulled during breakfast!" the redhead shot back, growing more frustrated at the boy in front of her with every passing second. From behind her, Della and Cassie joined the group.

"First of all, enchanted toast is hardly dangerous! Second of all, Remus is our friend before he's a prefect, and he'll always choose us over any position that Dumbledore gives him!" James replied, feeling defensive of his friend. Lily didn't need to be putting any more pressure on Moony than he already felt.

"Perhaps you shouldn't say what Remus would and would not do! Perhaps you should let Remus speak for himself!"

"Perhaps I _should_ let Remus speak for himself, so you can see that I'm right! As usual!"

"Alright then, Remus?" Lily inquired, glancing towards the werewolf expectantly.

"Yes! Remus?" James asked, turning to look at his friend.

The peaky-looking Gryffindor merely stuttered as he looked around in confusion at the expectant faces surrounding him.

"I'm sorry… what was the question again?"

Lily and James groaned in frustration, both wanting desperately to prove the other wrong, but before they had the opportunity to start arguing again, Professor Flitwick appeared at the entrance of Great Hall and called for all Fifth Years to enter and prepare to take their Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L.s.

Della and Cassie grabbed Lily by the hand and pulled her towards the Great Hall, away from James and his friends. The last thing they needed was for Lily to do something she'd regret and end up in detention for hexing Potter.

"Thanks, guys," Lily said, grateful that her friends had pulled her away from that cocky git before she'd done something stupid. "Good luck!" she called as she departed from them to find her desk. After a few minutes of searching, she found it and took a seat.

As Professor Flitwick began to send out the exams, Lily gave herself a mental pep talk. She could do this. Not even Potter and his mindless antics were going to ruin this day.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** I'm back with chapter 2! I know these first few chapters haven't been very long, but I'm still getting the hang of this and I'm going to try to make them longer as the story gets more interesting! Please comment!


	3. Mudbloods and Disastrous Dinners

**Can't Buy Me Love**

By: liliesandantlers

 **Chapter 3: Mudbloods and Disastrous Dinners**

* * *

 **Disclaimer:** Some of the dialogue in this chapter occurring between James, Lily, Severus, and Sirius was written by JK Rowling, and can be found in the chapter, "Snape's Worst Memory" in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. However, besides some of the direct words spoken between the aforementioned characters, all other content is my own.

* * *

As Professor Flitwick called for students to put down their quills, Lily breathed a deep sigh of relief. The Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L. had not been nearly as challenging as she had feared. Her many hours in the library had paid off. With a smile, Lily thought about how rocky her morning had started, but how much better it had gotten already. Who knew what else the day held?

Once Professor Flitwick released the Fifth Years, Lily immediately found Cassie and Della on her way out of the Great Hall.

"So, how'd you two do?" asked Lily as the trio made their way into the entrance hall and headed towards the front doors. The girls all seemed to have the same idea about spending some much-needed R&R time out on the grounds.

"I was completely daft! It'll be the shock of the century if I manage to pull a D!" Della said dramatically as the group stepped out into the warm sunlight.

"Oh stop! I'm sure you didn't do that bad!" Lily insisted, all negativity leaving her body the moment the sun hit her fair skin. Lily loved the sunshine. "How'd you do, Cassie?" she asked, hoping her other friend had fared better than Della.

"I feel pretty good about it, I suppose. I couldn't quite remember all the steps to warding off hinkypunks though," Cassie admitted with a frustrated sigh. The blonde was sure she'd receive good marks, but it was driving her mad not being able to remember that darned fourth step!

Della let out a frustrated groan as she plunked down beside the Great Lake with her friends.

"My father is going to go ballistic when he finds out how horribly I've done! He's been pushing me to follow in his footsteps as an Auror since I could walk! Now what am I going to do?" Della cried, throwing off her shoes and dipping her feet in the cool water.

Lily and Cassie exchanged worried glances. From what Della had told them, her father could be quite demanding, and he had high expectations for his daughter.

"Everything will work out, Dell. I promise," Cassie said earnestly, offering her friend a warm smile.

"And if it doesn't, I suppose you can always run away from home and start bartending at The Three Broomsticks!" Lily joked, kicking some water in Della's direction and soaking the ends of her robe. "I'm sure a fine piece like yourself would do quite well there!"

"Oh it's so on, Evans!" Della shouted, kicking water at Lily and Cassie ("Hey!"), and launching a full-on splash battle between the three friends. Della had just been about to push Lily in the lake when she looked across the grounds and saw something she knew was trouble.

"That can't be good," Della said, looking past her friends to a group of students who were gathered around what appeared to be a duel taking place near a beech tree.

Lily and Cassie whipped their heads around to match Della's gaze.

"Is that James Potter and Sirius Black?" Cassie asked, already knowing the answer to the question before she asked it. Those two were always getting into it with someone. "Whose that on the ground?" she asked, squinting her eyes as she tried to make out the face of the student being hexed. It was so bright outside Cassie could hardly see anything. Lily, however, had immediately recognized the figure.

"Oh you've got to be joking," Lily said through gritted teeth. Her entire body turned stiff as she realized who the boy on the ground was in front of James and Sirius.

Very quickly, before Della and Cassie could do anything to stop her, Lily pushed herself off the ground and began to march towards the fight, her mind already overflowing with a long list of hexes she'd love to sling Potter's way.

James had just hit Severus with the _Scourgify_ curse when Lily reached the edge of crowd, Della and Cassie right behind her.

"Leave him ALONE!" shouted Lily, shoving past students to get closer to the action.

James had been keeping an eye on the redhead from his spot under the beech tree, but he had been so preoccupied with Snape that he hadn't seen Lily make her way to the fight. Her harsh tone bruised his ego, but he didn't let it show, masking his disappointment with his signature smirk and a ruffle of the hair.

"All right, Evans?" James asked, noticing her robes were a bit damp. He figured she must've been playing in the water.

"Leave him alone," Lily repeated, glaring at the boy in front of her with what she hoped was an intimidating look. "What's he done to you?" she asked, glancing momentarily at her poor friend on the ground.

"Well, it's more the fact that he exists, if you know what I mean…" James answered, grinning as his comment earned him a round of laughs from his classmates.

Lily wasn't impressed, however. She'd never be impressed by Potter.

"You think you're funny, but you're just an arrogant, bullying toerag, Potter. Leave him alone!"

The Quidditch star considered her demands, but figured he could manipulate the situation to his advantage.

"I will if you go out with me, Evans. Go on… Go out with me, and I'll never lay a wand on old Snivelly again," James proposed, meaning every word of it. Hell, if Lily Evans would agree to go on a date with him, James would never ask for anything ever again.

"I wouldn't go out with you if it was a choice between you and the Giant Squid!" Lily shot back, disgusted that Potter would actually suggest such a thing! This was not a negotiation!

"Bad luck, Prongs." Sirius said, clapping his best friend on the back before turning towards Severus to cause more trouble. But the Slytherin had other plans. "Oy!" Sirius shouted, watching as Severus grabbed his wand and pointed it at James.

Lily watched in horror as a gash appeared on James's cheek and blood splattered his robes. But she barely had time to register her shock before James fired his own curse at Severus, leaving the boy dangling upside down in the air, underpants exposed.

For the smallest fraction of a second, Lily almost caught herself laughing, but she quickly reminded herself of the situation at hand and her status as a prefect, and she sobered up immediately. Her classmates were not as gracious and roared with laughter.

"Let him down!" Lily shouted, as much for her own sake as for Sev's. She really didn't want to start laughing.

"Certainly," said James, and in an instant, Severus was back on the ground, but not for long. The Slytherin stood up, only to be hit by Sirius with the petrifyingcurse, leaving the boy rigid as a board.

Lily no longer had any desire to laugh.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Lily yelled, whipping out her own wand and aiming it at James and Sirius. If it came down to her having to hex Potter and his sidekick in order for Sev to escape, she wouldn't hesitate.

James hadn't expected Lily to draw her wand, and he eyed it warily. He had spent enough time watching her in class to know you didn't want to be on the receiving end of one of her curses.

"Ah, Evans, don't make me hex you," James said, hoping Lily would lower her wand. He was only bluffing, of course. He would never do anything to harm her.

"Take the curse off him then!" Lily demanded, her wand unwavering.

James could see she meant business, so he did as he was told, bitterly muttering the countercurse that freed Severus from his binding state.

"There you go," James said, as the Slytherin quickly got to his feet and angrily dusted off his robe. "You're lucky Evans was here, Snivellus —"

"I don't need help from filthy little Mudbloods like her!" Severus shouted, interrupting James.

Immediately, the students who had been laughing and cheering fell silent.

The threat that James had been making towards Severus died in his throat.

The only sound to be heard was a gasp coming from somewhere in the crowd of Fifth Years.

In fact, it was so quiet that Lily Evans swore to herself that she could hear her heart breaking in two.

For a second, she wasn't even sure that she had heard Sev correctly. Perhaps he had said something else. Perhaps it was just a mistake, a misunderstanding. There had to be some explanation.

But as the reality of Severus's words hit her, Lily knew there had been no mistake. She wanted to cry, to scream. She wanted to run, wanted to punch Sev in the face for what he had just said. She wanted to curl up in a ball and rock herself to sleep, to some far off dreamland where what had just happened didn't exist.

But she didn't do anything of that. She couldn't. Not yet.

She wasn't about to give Sev the satisfaction of seeing her cry.

"Fine, I won't bother in the future," Lily said coldly, after what seemed like hours but was probably only seconds. "And I'd wash my pants if I were you, Snivellus," she added, for good measure. From behind her, she felt Della place a hand on her shoulder.

"Apologize to Evans!" James growled, shoving his wand dangerously close to Severus's throat. In all the boy's life, he couldn't remember being so angry.

"I don't want you to make him apologize!" Lily yelled, marching up to James and smacking his chest. "You're just as bad as he is!"

"What? I'd never call you a — a you-know-what!" James cried, yelping in pain as Lily slapped his chest again. He stumbled backward a few feet as he tried to avoid any more swats. He couldn't believe the redhead would be angry with him. He was defending her honor! No one was going to call Lily Evans a Mudblood and get away with it.

"Messing up your hair because you think it looks cool to look like you've just got off your broomstick, showing off with that stupid snitch, walking down corridors and hexing anyone who annoys you just because you can — I'm surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with your fat head on it. You make me sick!" Lily shouted, already beginning to feel the hot tears spill down her cheeks. She wouldn't — no, couldn't — have Sev, or Potter for that matter, see her cry, so she stormed off towards the castle with Della and Cassie on her heel.

As James watched Lily run away crying, he knew he had messed up big time.

"Evans! Hey, Evans!" he yelled, making a start to go after her, but he was held back by Remus, who had long since joined the crowd of students from his spot under the beech tree. "What is it with her?" James asked, hoping he didn't sound too worried as he shrugged out of his friend's grasp.

"Reading between the lines, I'd say she thinks you're a bit conceited, mate," Sirius replied, patting his best friend on the shoulder.

"Right," James muttered, growing angrier by the second. He turned to focus his attention on the Slytherin boy who had remained in their midst. In an instant, Severus was once again hanging upside down, and this time, James promised himself that he wouldn't show any mercy. "Who wants to see me take off Snivelly's pants?" he shouted, earning a round of cheers from the students surrounding him.

* * *

As Lily ran through the castle, Della and Cassie shouting after her to slow down, Severus's words echoed in her head, consuming her thoughts and making her feel nauseous.

 _"I don't need help from filthy little Mudbloods like her!"_

She still couldn't believe he had said it. How could he, knowing how badly it would hurt her? She thought Sev cared about her. He had been the one to tell her that blood status didn't matter. But clearly he had lied. Their years of friendship had all been a lie.

As Lily rounded a corner, Della finally caught up with her and grabbed her by the shoulder, forcing the redhead to stop.

"Lily, I know you're upset, but you can't just run through the castle crying. Exams are still going on, and if a teacher catches you running through the halls wailing, they're not going to be happy," Della said, her hand remaining firmly on Lily's shoulder as Cassie, who had been lagging behind a bit, reached the pair. "Come on, let us take you back to the dorm. We'll draw you a hot bath."

"I can ask if the house-elves will make you a cup of tea," Cassie added.

Lily knew her friends were just trying to help her, but no amount of hot baths or cups of tea were going to make her feel better. This wasn't something that could be fixed so easily.

"I really just want to be alone right now," Lily muttered, wiping away her tears with the back of her hand. "I promise I'll be back in time for dinner, but I just really need to be alone. I'm sorry," Lily said, breaking away from Della's grasp and running down the corridor before her friends could try to stop her.

Lily wasn't sure where she was going, just that she needed to get away. She needed a place where she could cry and be left alone for a few hours: a place to fall apart in peace. Unfortunately, there weren't many spots like that in Hogwarts except for the broom cupboards and the cubicles in the lavatory, neither of which sounded very appealing.

As Lily made her way through the many twisting, turning halls, she slowed her pace from a jog to a slow shuffle, barely managing to pick her feet off the ground as the pain of Severus's words threatened to completely overwhelm her.

The Gryffindor had all but given up hope of finding a quiet place to mourn her friendship when suddenly she found herself in an empty corridor, at the end of which was a rather large door. Intrigued, for Lily couldn't remember ever seeing this door before, the redhead slowly made her way towards it. Nothing about the door was particularly interesting or impressive, but Lily felt a strange urge to open it. Somehow she knew that whatever lay beyond would help her.

So with a quick turn of the worn, brass doorknob, Lily opened the door and stepped into what was quite possibly the largest room she'd ever seen in her life.

Everywhere she looked, the prefect saw great piles of both the oddest and most ordinary objects. A china cabinet full of glowing glass vials, a smattering of broomsticks, several broken desks, and a mounted dragon's head were just some of the items she saw nearest to her. And the books, so many books.

With a stab to the heart, Lily thought to herself how much Sev would love this place.

The redhead made her way through the many piles of discarded things until she found a faded floor pillow, presumably from the Divination classroom, and sat down, leaning her head against a large, ornate cabinet behind her.

Once again, the tears began to flow freely down her cheeks, but this time, Lily didn't do a thing to stop them. She embraced them. She sobbed heavily, tears choking back swears as she pounded the dusty floor with her small fists. She allowed the full force of Severus's words to pervade her every thought. Lily knew there was no way for their friendship to come back from this, so she let the pain consume her. She knew this was the only way she'd ever heal.

Memories from her childhood with Severus flashed through her mind, forming a dizzying blur of images and feelings. The day Sev told her she was a witch, a humid summer night in Cokeworth catching lightning bugs together, showing up at Sev's house with her Hogwarts letter, ecstatic to find that he'd received his as well; these were just a few of the memories that stuck out to Lily, making her feel nauseous with grief.

And in the midst of the nostalgia were Severus's words, screaming in her head.

 _"I don't need help from filthy little Mudbloods like her!"_

 _"Filthy little Mudbloods"_

 _"Mudbloods"_

 _"Like_ _her_ _"_

Lily couldn't take it anymore. With a scream, she jumped up from the pillow and grabbed the first thing she could reach (a beautiful glass figurine of a honey badger) and threw it as far as she could, watching it smash into a thousand pieces on the stone floor. This quickly led to Lily picking up anything else that looked reasonably breakable and destroying it.

She threw a crystal wizarding chess set on the ground as hard as she could, and then she flung an old divination orb through the china cabinet full of vials. Around her, the carnage grew.

For several minutes, this went on: Lily breaking things and swearing, tears pouring down her face every second, until eventually she got tired. Watching the glass and crystal shatter didn't feel nearly as good as it had moments before. In fact, it felt awful. It was horrible and ugly. So many beautiful things ruined.

And there was no one to blame but her.

With another sob that racked her small frame, Lily fell down against the ornate cabinet, not even paying mind to the dangerous shards of rubble around her.

Just an hour or so earlier, Severus had ruined a beautiful, pure thing in a horribly destructive way, and here Lily was doing the same thing.

The broken girl leaned her head back against the cabinet and closed her eyes, sobs still shaking her to the bone. After several minutes, she fell into a deep, troubled sleep.

* * *

As James ate dinner with his friends later that evening, he couldn't help but notice the absence of Lily from the Gryffindor table. He tried to pretend he wasn't bothered by the fact that she was still missing, but as his friends joked around and stuffed their faces, James felt distant and distracted, searching the Great Hall every few minutes in the hopes he would spot Lily's mess of red hair.

"Prongs, you've hardly touched your food! How are you supposed to grow to be a big, strong boy if you don't eat!" Sirius teased, ruffling James's hair as if he were a child.

"I'll eat it!" Peter shouted, reaching for James's plate of roast and potatoes.

Before he could grab the food, however, Sirius slapped Peter's hand away.

"Ah ah! You've got your own, Wormy. Prongs needs to eat," Sirius said, eyeing Peter's grabby hands warily.

"No, it's alright. Wormtail can have it. I'm not hungry," James said, shoving his plate of food towards Peter, who eagerly began to devour the tasty morsels.

Sirius and Remus eyed James skeptically. The chaser had been acting strangely all day.

"Is everything alright, Prongs?" Remus asked as he chewed his dinner roll. "You've been quiet all day. It's not like you."

"Yeah, you should be ecstatic, Prongsie! In the course of just one afternoon, you aced an O.W.L. and showed the entire Fifth Year class Snivelly's underpants!" Sirius said, clapping his best friend on the back.

James sighed and ran his fingers through his hair several times, trying to rid himself of the guilt and worry he was feeling.

"Don't forget, I also provoked Snivellus into calling Evans the M-word and making her cry," James replied, hanging his head in shame.

Sirius and Remus glanced at each other from across the table, realizing why their best friend had been acting so strangely. Next to Remus, Peter continued to tuck into the potatoes.

"Mate," Sirius began slowly, "what happened between Lily and that slimeball today wasn't your fault. We know you would never intentionally hurt her."

"But it is my fault!" James insisted, unable now to keep his hands out of his hair. "If I hadn't suggested we hex that greasy crow none of this would've happened! Evans wouldn't have gotten hurt!"

"Lily will be fine, James," Remus said. "She's tough. She's not going to let this ruin her. You have to remember that she's grown up going to school with people like the Slytherins, who look down on her because of her blood status. Unfortunately, this isn't new to her."

Unsurprisingly, that didn't make James feel any better.

It made him sick to his stomach to think that Lily could possibly be used to this type of treatment. Why would anyone want to treat her badly? Couldn't they see how wonderful she was? James understood that he was more than a little biased towards Lily, but anyone could see that she was one of the brightest witches at Hogwarts. She deserved to be there just as much as anyone else, if not more.

"You're right," James muttered, still worried but not in the mood to argue. He let the subject drop, fearing what little dinner he had managed to eat would come up if he kept talking about the prejudice held by some at Hogwarts.

"So… uh, Padfoot, who do you have for the World Cup?" Remus asked lamely, desperately trying to change the subject and also hoping that talk of Quidditch would liven James's spirits.

"I dunno… I reckon the Bulgarians nearly always get in, and the Netherlands have been doing great, so I think they certainly have a shot at it," Sirius answered, after a moment of contemplation.

"Rubbish!" Peter shouted, talk of Quidditch snapping the boy out of his potato reverie. Peter couldn't play Quidditch, but he was a massive fan. "Brazil's been looking top shape, so they'll definitely be going, and as far as Bulgaria is concerned, I think their best days are behind them!"

Sirius and Peter broke out into a heated debate over who would make it to the Quidditch World Cup, Remus occasionally tossing in his opinion when he was asked. As for James, he continued to search the Great Hall for signs of Lily. Although her absence concerned him, he supposed Remus was probably right. Lily was tough. Before this morning, James had never even seen her cry before. Although he knew she must be really hurting, he figured she wouldn't let Snivellus get to her.

James began to relax a little as Remus's words calmed him down. He grabbed a dinner roll and munched on it as he listened to Sirius and Peter argue over the strength of Bulgaria's offense.

"I can't believe you actually think Bulgaria won't make it! You're mad, Wormy!" Sirius exclaimed, slamming his fist on the table. "Tell him he's mad, Prongs!" Sirius demanded, looking at his best friend earnestly. Sirius hated loosing an argument.

A small smile formed on James's lips, "You're both mad. It's gonna be Egypt and Ireland in the Cup, and I'll put five galleons down right now that the Irish take it!"

A wide grin broke out on Sirius's face. He was glad to see that his best friend was acting normal again.

"I'll take that action!" shouted Remus, reaching across the table to shake James's hand.

The four friends laughed and continued to discuss the upcoming World Cup amongst themselves, debating over who would make it and who would not. Everything was fine until Peter spotted something near the entrance of the Great Hall.

"Is that Lily? She looks dreadful."

James's head whipped around instantly at the mention of Lily's name, and his eyes immediately spotted her near the doors of the Great Hall. His mouth fell open a little bit.

She _did_ look dreadful.

Her eyes were bloodshot from all the crying she'd been doing, and there was a small cut on her cheek, almost as if something sharp had nicked her. Streaks of mascara littered her face, and her hair was a disheveled mess.

The roar of the Great Hall died down a bit as Lily began to make her way to the Gryffindor table. News of the incident at the lake had spread like wildfire around school, and everyone had been anticipating the redhead's reappearance.

As Lily neared the Marauders, James jumped up from his seat.

"Evans, are you okay?" he asked worriedly, noticing the cut on her cheek.

"Never better," Lily replied shortly, glaring daggers at James, who wanted nothing more at that very moment than to throw his arms around the girl in front of him and hold her close. However, he figured that wouldn't be well received.

Lily began to shuffle past him, but James grabbed her arm, holding her back.

"Wait! Evans, I'm sorry. Let me make it up to you!" he cried, very aware of the many eyes that were now watching his every movement.

"I don't want your help, Potter. Haven't you done enough?" Lily shot back, wrenching her arm out of the boy's grasp and turning to meet Della and Cassie at the other end of the table.

But once again, James was too fast, and he caught her arm a second time.

"Evans, wait!" he called, pulling her back to face him.

But Lily had had enough.

As James turned her around, Lily grabbed her wand from the pocket of her robe and aimed it straight at the boy's chest.

" _Stupefy_!" the witch shouted, sending James flying in the opposite direction.

Immediately, the entire Great Hall erupted with noise. Some students cheered while others booed, and a few even grabbed their own wands, fearing a full-blown duel was going to break out in the middle of dinner.

Several yards away, James came to, very aware that his ass was rather swore. He looked around him and hundreds of eyes looked back. The entire student body was on the edge of their seat. The room buzzed with chaos.

James couldn't believe she'd done it. Lily had actually hexed him in front of the entire school. With a shudder, he realized his reputation might never be the same.

Suddenly, a loud, shrill whistling sound filled the air, causing everyone in the vicinity to cover their ears in pain. The noise subsided after a few seconds, and all the students turned to face the witch at the front of the room who had caused it.

"Students, put your wands away! Potter, get up! And Miss Evans, fifteen points taken from Gryffindor for dueling in the Great Hall…" Professor McGonagall shouted, pausing as she considered the scene in front of her, "…and five points rewarded for excellent execution and aim," the teacher added, a twinkle in her eye as she returned to her seat at the Professors' table.

Slowly, students returned to their dinners, realizing the show was over. Lily glared at James, who was still on the ground, looking completely dumbfounded.

"Stay away from me, Potter. I went easy on you. Next time, I won't."

And with not another glance in his direction, James watched Lily march to the end of the Gryffindor table, where Della and Cassie were waiting for her, mouths hanging open.

Sirius and Remus ran over to help James up. Peter was still too stunned to move.

"Which do you want first: the good news or the bad news, Prongs?" Sirius asked as he offered James a hand.

"Good news, I 'spose," James muttered, rubbing his ass as he stood up. There was sure to be a bruise tomorrow.

"Well… the good news is everyone feels bad for you because you just got your arse kicked by a girl. The bad news is everyone just watched you get your arse kicked by a girl," Sirius replied with a cheeky smile, earning him a punch to the shoulder from James.

"Do you really think everyone was watching?" James asked as he sat back down, looking around self-consciously.

"Sorry mate, but it's not everyday that a duel breaks out during dinner," Remus replied with a guilty smile.

"It was not a duel!" James huffed, grabbing his discarded dinner roll and taking an angry bite out of it.

"Prongs is right, Moony. A duel would imply he fought back," Sirius teased, earning himself yet another punch from his best friend.

"It's not so bad, Prongs!" Peter said encouragingly. "Remember in third year when Venus Crook sent a Bat Bogey hex my way in the middle of the corridor? Loads of people watched, and look how I turned out!"

With a groan, James rammed his head against the table, hoping that if he hit it hard enough, perhaps he'd forget about the events of the last few moments.

"My life is over."

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Another chapter done! I really hoped you guys liked this one! I know I did! I'm super excited for the next few chapters! Hint: you get introduced to several new characters and summertime is coming up for our favorite Hogwarts students! As always, PRETTY PLEASE review and follow! xoxo


	4. How I Met Your Father

**Can't Buy Me Love**

By: liliesandantlers

 **Chapter 4: How I Met Your Father**

* * *

 **Disclaimer:** A small portion of dialogue included in this chapter between Lily and Severus was written by J.K. Rowling and is being used for accurate storytelling. This dialogue can be found in the the chapter, "The Prince's Tale" in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. All other content is my own. Thank you!

* * *

As James sat by the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room, he couldn't help but feel grateful that the school year was finally coming to an end. It had only been a week since his disastrous encounter with Lily, but it felt more like years. For the first time in James's life, people had begun to tease him. Everywhere he went, students of all ages from every house made snide remarks to him about the incident in the Great Hall.

"You okay, Potter? You aren't walking with a limp are you?"

"You better run, Potter! I think Lily's coming!"

"I'm hereby revoking your Man Card. You'll get it back the next time you get laid."

That last one had been Sirius.

It was infuriating and humiliating to say the least. James wasn't used to being the butt of everyone's joke. In fact, the teasing had gotten so bad that the chaser had resorted to spending his last week of school holed up in Gryffindor Tower, only coming out to take the remaining O.W.L.s and to sneak off to the Quidditch pitch to blow off steam.

The whole ordeal had made James think long and hard about the torment he had put other's through, and by the seventh consecutive day of playing Exploding Snap in the stuffy common room, he began to regret some of the things he had said about his classmates over the years.

"Prongs, if you're not playing to win, then don't play at all!" Sirius huffed, scolding James for once again zoning out.

"Padfoot, it's just a stupid game."

"It is _not_ just a stupid game! It's Exploding Snap, and it's all we have left in this cruel world since you went and got yourself stupefied by Lily!" Sirius exclaimed dramatically, tossing his cards onto the floor. The boy could hardly take it anymore, being trapped in the common room all day while his classmates roamed the sunny grounds! Sirius doubted Azkaban itself would be as bad as the current hell he found himself in.

"Could we please not bring _her_ up?" James asked, clearly annoyed at his friend's theatrics. James appreciated his friends sticking by him in his time of social exile, but he was getting seriously tired of everyone bringing up the incident with Lily. It wasn't like he wasn't already thinking about it all the time… and having nightmares about it.

"I think we should bring it up! You need to face your fears and apologize to Evans so this whole mess can be over with, and we can go back to ruling the school from our rightful spot at the top of the food chain!" Sirius whined.

James was preparing to list off all the reasons why confronting Lily was a horrible plan, but Remus beat him to it.

"Actually, Padfoot… I don't know if that's the best idea. I don't think Lily wants to talk to Prongs at the moment," the werewolf said.

"She _did_ say that if Prongs bothered her, she would hex him again. Harder than before," Peter added, a horrified look on his face as he recalled the last time the redhead cursed his friend.

Sirius rolled his eyes. Even Wormy was disagreeing with him.

"I just can't take this anymore! We've barely left the common room in seven days! I'm withering away! I need sunlight and fresh air!" Sirius cried, jokingly holding his hand to his head as if he might faint.

"You just want to go outside because you're hoping some Sixth Year girl will fall into the lake and get her blouse wet," Remus said matter-of-factly.

"Actually, I was going to pay some Third Year to push one of them in, but close enough," Sirius admitted with a devilish grin.

Suddenly the portrait door swung open, and Lily stepped inside, followed by Cassie and Della. Lily had been laughing at something Della had said, but as soon as the redhead spotted James, all semblance of humor died, and she shot the boy a harsh look that seemed to say, "Don't even think about it".

"You know what… I'm with Padfoot. Some fresh air and sunlight sound good right about now," James said quickly, standing up from his spot on the couch and rushing towards the portrait hole.

Sirius jumped up excitedly and ran after his best friend, Peter quickly following suit.

"But Prongs I thought— oh wait up you three!" Remus called, hurrying after the trio as they made their way out of the common room.

Lily stared after the group of friends, thankful that Potter had been wise enough to leave her alone.

"What was that about?" Cassie asked, perplexed at the boys' sudden exit.

"Just Potter knowing his place, that's all," Lily said shortly as the girls made their way up the spiral staircase towards their room. "And that's far away from me."

The redhead threw her bag on the floor and flopped onto her bed with a deep sigh. Just the sight of that messy-haired git put her in a bad mood.

"Oh please don't start going on about him again!" Della begged, searching through her trunk for a change of clothes. "All I've heard this week is 'Potter this' and 'Potter that'. For someone who hates him so much, you sure do love talking about him."

Lily rolled her eyes. "First of all, I don't _hate_ him. I just detest him with a passion. And second of all, you'd rant about him too if he messed with your life as much as he messed with mine!"

"I understand he's a prat but— and don't take this the wrong way— maybe what happened last week was a blessing in disguise," Della said hesitantly. "I mean, Potter's so scared of you now that he's leaving you alone, and well… as much as I know it hurt you, you finally saw the real Severus so…"

Lily sighed, knowing Della was probably right. As much as she had been complaining, Potter _was_ finally leaving her alone, and although thinking about the incident at the lake made Lily's heart feel like it was breaking all over again, she knew that cutting Sev off was for the best.

"You're right, Dell," Lily admitted. "I'm sorry I've been complaining so much lately. I guess I've still been expecting Potter to badger me, and everything with Sev is still so fresh."

"I know, Lils, and I know it sucks right now, but just think about how much better next year will be with neither of them bothering you!" Della said, trying to cheer her friend up.

"Yeah! Everything will be so much better next year! Just wait and see!" Cassie called from her bed as she skimmed through a book on merpeople.

"I guess you two are right," Lily sighed, picking up a copy of _Witch Weekly_ from her nightstand. "I can't believe term is already over."

"Me either! It seems like every year goes by faster," Cassie said, thinking back on her time at Hogwarts.

"I know! I'm so excited for summer, though. Dad's taking the whole family to the World Cup!" Della announced as she changed into a red blouse that complimented her olive skin tone.

"Ooo fun! What are you doing this summer, Lily?" Cassie asked.

Lily shuddered as she thought about going home for holiday. Of course, she was thrilled to see her parents. She missed them so much when she was at school. But going home meant being constantly ridiculed by Petunia, who seemed to be growing crueler with age.

"I don't know… probably help mum in the garden I suppose. Go to the cinema with dad," Lily murmured vaguely.

"Well, please remember to write! I want to hear every detail no matter how small," Cassie said with a soft smile. She knew that Lily had mixed feelings about going home. "Anyway, are you two packed yet?"

"Of course not! We've still got loads of time!" Della said.

Lily snorted. "Not really, we leave tomorrow."

"Exactly! And that's what tomorrow morning is for: throwing everything into my trunk as fast as I can while you two shout at me to hurry up!" Della said with a cheeky smile.

"Well, I suppose things just wouldn't be the same if we didn't nearly miss the train every year," Cassie teased.

"That's the spirit! Why mess with tradition?"

Talk of the impending summer holiday eventually dropped as the girls relaxed in their dormitory, Cassie and Lily reading, while Della painted her nails and hummed along to the tune of "I Got You Babe".

Although Lily tried her best to focus on the magazine article in front of her ("How to make the Wizard of your Dreams Fall at your Feet!"), she was unable to and found herself anxiously contemplating her return home. Dread filled the young witch as she wondered what Petunia's first insult would be. "Freak" had always been a favorite, but over winter holiday, she had begun using "Pagan Nut" quite often. Lily could only hope that since her sister was now old enough to drive, she would spend more time away from the house. Petunia had always liked taking trips to the city. Said it was where the right kind of folk lived.

Well, Lily thought, at least going home to Cokeworth meant not having to deal with Potter for two months. That much she was looking forward to.

* * *

James had been outside only a few minutes before the teasing began. It had been a Sixth Year Ravenclaw who made the first comment ("Your arse still sore, James?") and then a group of Hufflepuffs had walked past sniggering at him from his spot under the beech tree with Sirius, Remus, and Peter.

"Don't worry, Prongs, it'll all blow over," Remus assured him after a Third Year Slytherin told James he was a disgrace for being bested by a muggleborn.

The chaser sighed in frustration as he leaned his head against the beech tree and looked out across the grounds. All around him, students were enjoying their last day at Hogwarts before summer holiday, and here he was being ridiculed for something he couldn't have possibly seen coming.

"I'm just over all this. I can't even go outside without being bloody harassed!" James cried, jumping up from his spot on the grass. "Come on, let's go back inside."

Judging by the looks on his friends' faces, this wasn't exactly what the rest of the Marauders had in mind.

"Are you kidding me, mate? This is the first time we've been outside in days, and you already want to leave? I was just about to give Henry the go-ahead to push Bethany Green into the lake!" Sirius whined, gesturing to the Third Year Ravenclaw who was waiting nearby for the Gryffindor's cue.

"Well, Henry can keep your galleon, and I'll pay you back. I'm tired of being treated like some defenseless pansy who got his arse kicked by a girl," James replied hotly, standing his ground.

"Technically, you _did_ get your arse kicked by a girl," Sirius shot back, knowing that James was going to get his way as usual.

"Not helping, Padfoot."

Sirius merely rolled his eyes. "Alright, come on lads. Let's go back inside. We had our five minutes of freedom," he said with a dramatic sigh.

The rest of the boys stood up and followed James back to the castle, pouting the entire way. As the friends made their way into the entrance hall, Peter spoke up.

"So what should we do now? I don't think I can play another round of Exploding Snap."

"I'm with Wormy. No more Exploding Snap," Remus agreed as the group made their way up the grand staircase.

"I already know Peter's answer, but are you lot hungry?" Sirius asked, figuring that if nothing better came along, the boys could always head to the kitchens. The house-elves loved the Marauders.

"I could eat," James said with a shrug. At least there wouldn't be anyone in the kitchens to make fun of him. "What about you, Moony?"

"Better than Exploding Snap."

And with that, the group headed off towards the secret entrance to the kitchens, completely unaware of the horrible mistake they had just made.

The boys were almost there when they rounded a corner and ran headfirst into what could only be described as the physical manifestation of trouble.

Damien Mulciber and Edgar Avery leaned against the corridor wall, sniggering at a joke that had probably come at someone else's expense. At only sixteen, Mulciber was already bigger than most Seventh Year boys, with large muscles and a proud face that was framed by wavy brown hair. Avery, on the other hand, was slimmer than his counterpart, and looked very much like an odd sort of bird with his pointed nose and beady eyes. On either side of the boys, hanging on to their every wicked word, were Venus and Vivian Crook, a set of twins with short, choppy blonde hair and harsh, calculating blue eyes. James recalled Nearly Headless Nick telling him once that the Crook sisters were the worst thing to hit Hogwarts since Bellatrix Black.

The Slytherins spotted the Marauders and immediately stopped laughing. Their eyes narrowed and a twisted smile played on their lips. They looked like a pack of feral dogs who had just found their next meal.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" Mulciber sneered, pushing himself off the wall and dragging Venus along with him. Avery and Vivian joined the couple, flanking the pair on either side.

"The golden boy fallen from grace, Regulus's screw up older brother, the human scar, and… the family pet," Avery taunted.

"We don't want any trouble," James said shortly.

"What? Scared I'll send my girlfriend after you, Potter?" Mulciber teased, his large arm tightening around Venus's waist as the Slytherins laughed.

"I'm not scared of you or your slut, Mulciber," James replied hotly.

All laughing from the Slytherins ceased immediately. Mulciber looked like he might explode with rage, but that was nothing compared to how furious Venus looked. Her pale skin had turned an alarming shade of red.

"How _dare_ you insult my sister like that!" Vivian shrieked, her small fists shaking with anger. "At least Damien doesn't fancy Mudblood whores like you!"

This time it was James who turned red.

In an instant, he whipped out his wand, Sirius right behind him, with Remus and Peter grabbing theirs as well.

Across from them, all four Slytherins had pulled out their wands too.

For several seconds, no one spoke. No one even moved. The air around the students seemed to crackle with electricity.

Finally, Remus broke the silence.

"No one has to get hurt. It's the last day of term. Tomorrow, we'll all be headed home, and we won't have to see each other for two months. I say we all put our wands down and be on our way," the werewolf said quickly, hoping to defuse the hostile situation.

"Now now, Moony. Let's not be rash. We should use our magic while we still can," Sirius argued.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I agree with Screw Up," Avery hissed, his wand aimed directly at the eldest Black.

"Don't call me that!" Sirius shouted.

"What? You don't like Screw Up? What about Family Disappointment?" Vivian sneered. "Personally, I don't think it has the same ring to it."

On the Marauders' side, James simmered with anger, but as much as he wanted to sling curses the Slytherins' way, he knew that it'd be massive trouble for everyone involved if they got caught dueling in the corridor. Again.

"Remus is right," James said hesitantly, loosening his grip on his wand ever-so-slightly. "We should all just let this one go. We'll have plenty of time next year to get into it."

"Blimey! Who would've dreamed that the biggest hot head in Gryffindor would be playing peacemaker?" Mulciber taunted. "Maybe getting your arse kicked by Lily Evans put you in your place… Speaking of, we've actually been meaning to thank you. We've been trying to get Severus to cut off that slag for years, and you, Potter, finally pushed him into screwing it up so badly with her that now she won't have him back! So I suppose we'll let you off the hook this one time for doing our dirty work for us," Mulciber sneered as he lowered his wand. "Let's go, you lot," he grunted to his friends, gesturing for them to follow him as he took a step towards James.

But suddenly the Gryffindor was no longer interested in keeping the peace.

Damn the consequences.

"And why would Snivellus be better off without Evans?" James asked, no longer trying to control his anger. In front him, Mulciber stopped, and the rest of the Slytherins, who hadn't yet moved, tightened their grip on their wands.

"Really? Could you possibly be that thick, Potter? Do I really have to spell it out for you?"

In response, James merely glared at him.

"We can't have a future Death Eater hanging around with a Mudblood! It's embarrassing, and she was making him weak!" Mulciber hissed.

None of the Gryffindors showed any surprise that the Slytherins intended to join the Dark Lord after graduation.

"So you're not even trying to hide it anymore?" James spat, glancing from Mulciber to Avery to the Crook twins. "Your plans to join You-Know-Who, I mean. You're just so proud of signing up to kill innocent people that you can't wait to tell everyone."

Behind James, the rest of the Marauders looked at the Slytherins with disgust.

"That's where we disagree, Potter. I don't think they're innocent at all. There's nothing innocent about poisoning our society! Schools like Hogwarts should be for people like you and I, only. Don't you see, Potter? Only purebloods should be allowed to study and practice magic. Mixing in the likes of mutants like Lily Evans only pollutes our blood and makes us weaker." Mulciber explained, before pausing and considering the boy in front of him. "You know, Potter, as much as I truly despise you, you're not a half-bad wizard. The Dark Lord would be happy to accept you as a follower."

James hadn't been expecting Mulciber to offer him a position in Voldemort's ranks, and the proposition literally made him laugh.

"You really think I'd ever join that blood supremacist? Thanks, but no thanks. Unlike you lot, I'm not despicable," James replied coldly.

Mulciber didn't look too pleased with the Gryffindor's response.

"You really think you're so much better than us, Potter? At least we care about something. We care enough to put our lives on the line to fight for what we believe in. What do you care about? Hair product?"

James's glare faltered, and he suddenly found it very difficult to look into Mulciber's cruel eyes.

Avery jumped at James's silence and continued the verbal assault.

"You have an awful lot to say about our plans for after graduation, but what about your own? From what I've heard, you're planning on taking over dear old daddy's company. What's it called again, Vivian?" Avery asked, turning to his girlfriend.

"Sleekeazy's Hair Potion," she sneered, the words sounding like insults.

"Ahh yes… Sleekeazy's Hair Potion… a really noble cause, Potter," Avery drawled.

"Do you want to know the difference between me and you, Potter?" Mulciber asked, glaring at the boy in front of him. "When I say I care about something, like Blood Scum being allowed in my school, I do something about it. I risk everything to fight for my cause… but you, Potter, say that muggleborns are just the same as us, but what have you ever done for them? What has your _family_ ever done for them?" Mulciber paused, noticing how James flinched at the word "family". Clearly he had found the boy's weak spot. "Oh yes, father tells me all about the Potters and how they think they're so much better than everyone else because they're muggleborn sympathizers. But what do they do to help the Blood Scum they love so dearly? Nothing. They sit in their big house counting all the money their cheap hairspray fetches them, and they accuse noble families like mine of being the bad guys. So don't belittle me for fighting for what I believe in when the most you've ever done for Mudbloods is ask out a girl who doesn't even want you."

What happened next happened very quickly.

" _Stupefy_!" James shouted, hitting Mulciber in the chest.

" _Stupefy_!" Sirius cried, catching Avery by surprise.

The two Slytherins went flying in the opposite direction, but their girlfriends were quick to fire their own spells.

" _Diffindo_!" Venus cried, the cutting curse missing James by only a few inches.

" _Flitterphlegm_!" Vivian screamed, hitting Remus with the Bat Bogey hex.

" _Petrificus Totalus_!"

" _Stupefy_!"

" _Expelliarmus_!"

" _Impedimenta_!"

Around the students, misaimed spells hit the walls of the castle, shattering stone and causing debris to fly.

Within minutes, James and Sirius had managed to turn the corridor into a war zone.

" _Diffindo_!"

" _Petrifcus Totalus_!"

" _Incendio_!"

" _Flitterphlegm_!"

" _Levicorpus_!"

The duel waged on for several more minutes, and it would've continued for far longer, but a Hufflepuff who had been headed to their common room happened upon the scene and ran to get a teacher.

Unfortunately for the group of Fifth Years, that teacher was Professor McGonagall.

"What on EARTH do you think you're doing?" McGonagall screeched, marching down the corridor towards her students. " _Accio!_ " the witch screamed, and immediately all eight wands flew into her hand, some still spewing magic.

The fuming professor took in the scene in front of her. James's glasses were cracked, Mulciber's robes were smoking, Vivian lay petrified on the floor, and poor Peter hung upside down in the air, arms flailing.

"Twenty points EACH will be taken from your houses for dueling in the corridors and for damaging school property!" McGonagall shrieked. "Slytherins, head back to your common room immediately! Potter, Black, Lupin, and Pettigrew, follow me!"

The Slytherins grabbed their wands and slinked off towards the dungeons, glancing back at Professor McGonagall to shoot her looks of contempt. But the witch had already begun marching towards her office, the Marauders slowly dragging their feet behind her.

When the group arrived, the witch took a seat behind her large wooden desk and motioned for the boys to sit as well. Before the Marauders' time at Hogwarts, Minerva had only kept two chairs for students in her office, but after the boys finished First Year with a record-breaking amount of disciplinary infractions, the witch had requested two additional chairs be brought in.

Unfortunately, they had been put to good use.

"I would like to start out by saying how disappointed I am in every single one of you! Dueling in the corridors? I expect as much from the Slytherins! Merlin knows Horace doesn't make them behave… but you four!" she paused, taking turns glaring at each of them, "I expect better from Gryffindors!"

"I tolerate most of your shenanigans because I know you mean no harm, but this? You boys will be Sixth Years in only a few short months! And then you'll be Seventh Years, and then you'll be out in the real world, and in case you haven't been paying attention, the wizarding world is not a very forgiving place at the moment!" McGonagall hissed, shaking her head darkly. "I cannot coddle you any longer! You need to begin taking your education here at Hogwarts seriously, or people like Edgar Avery and Vivian Crook are going to come looking for you one day, and you're not going to be prepared for them when they do! Now… get out of my office and go back to the common room!"

The boys stood up to leave, thankful to be free from further flak.

" _Except_ for you, Mr. Potter."

"Sorry mate," Sirius whispered as James sat back down.

Once the rest of the Marauders had left, Professor McGonagall studied James carefully, noticing how his head hung in shame and defeat.

"What's wrong, Potter? Usually you're not so affected by my criticism," the witch said, picking up on the boy's quieter-than-usual demeanor.

Slowly, James lifted his head and met his professor's stony eyes. There was no point in lying. Minerva McGonagall could smell troll shit from a mile away.

"Professor, do you think I'm pathetic?" James asked quietly.

McGonagall's stern expression softened slightly at the boy's question.

"No, Potter, I don't think you're pathetic. You are many things: hot-headed, stubborn, fidgety, and more than a trifle overconfident… but not pathetic." Minerva said, a small smile playing on the corner of her lips as she regarded the messy-haired boy in front of her. She had always been fond of young Mr. Potter. "May I ask where your question came from?"

James sighed, "Nowhere… Mulciber just said something before we started dueling, that's all."

"And what did Mr. Mulciber say to provoke such a reaction?" McGonagall asked, her thin eyebrows raising in surprise.

"Well… he said that I don't really care about muggleborns, I just pretend to. And then he said my parents are the same way. He said they sit in our house all day and count money instead of fighting for what they care about," James answered, his cheeks turning scarlet. "Professor, was Mulciber right? About me and my parents?"

Minerva pursed her lips and shook her head.

"Mr. Potter, as misguided as you may be at times, you are a much better wizard than Mr. Mulciber will ever be, and I'm not just talking about spells," McGonagall replied. "You're young, Potter, and sometimes when you're young, you don't know how to fight for the things, or people, you care about. But that doesn't mean you care any less."

"And as far as your parents are concerned, it would be a most difficult task to find a better witch or wizard," the teacher continued, smiling softly at her pupil. "Your father may not work for the Ministry like Mulciber's father, but he has done good for the wizarding community in his own way, by setting an example for how we should treat others. And your mother is the same. Your parents face a great deal of criticism from people like the Mulcibers and Averys because they stand up for what's right in the face of prejudice. To say that they do nothing for their cause would be doing them a great disservice. So please, Potter, do not ever feel ashamed because of your parents."

James's heart swelled with pride as McGonagall talked about his mother and father. He knew he shouldn't have let Mulciber and Avery get to him. His parents were the finest witch and wizard he had ever known.

"Thank you, Professor. For everything," James said. McGonagall could be a hardass, but sometimes, even he had to admit she was alright.

"You're welcome, Potter. You may go now. I fear if I keep you any longer, Mr. Black will concoct some absurd plan to break you out," Minerva replied with a small wink.

James merely laughed and stood up, waving goodbye to his teacher as he headed towards the door.

"Oh, and Potter?"

James turned to meet her gaze.

"I would think it wise to not badger Miss Evans at the moment. She didn't seem too pleased with you in the Great Hall last week."

* * *

As Lily brushed her teeth, she reminisced on the events of the evening. The End-of-Year Feast had been "record-breakingly yummy" according to Dumbledore, and Lily had to say she agreed. To everyone's shock, Hufflepuff had somehow managed to win the House Cup. Apparently, there had been some last minute point deductions for Gryffindor and Slytherin. Lily suspected Potter and his miscreants were behind it. Dumbledore's End-of-Year speech had been a tad more grim than previous years. The Headmaster spoke of the importance of staying true to your inner light in dark times. Lily recalled how the Great Hall had fallen quiet at his words. Everyone knew Dumbledore had been referring to the growing chaos being caused by Voldemort.

With a shiver, Lily finished brushing her teeth and headed back into her dormitory to go to bed. Her roommates, like her, were quiet as they prepared for their last night of Fifth Year. They had been anticipating a celebratory House Cup party, but since Hufflepuff had won, all festivities had been cancelled.

Cassie sat atop her four poster, braiding her long, beautiful hair as she always did before bed. Della flipped through the pages of a muggle magazine her mother had sent her, completely engrossed in an article about hot pants. On the other side of the room, Marlene McKinnon was having trouble getting her trunk closed and had resorted to sitting on it to try to force it shut. Lily's fifth roommate, Mary Macdonald, was nowhere to be found.

"Need any help, Marlene?" Lily asked, noticing her roommate seemed to be getting nowhere with her stubborn luggage.

"No thanks, Lily. I've almost got it!" Marlene cried, her dirty blonde hair flouncing about as she bounced up and down on the trunk.

After several seconds of no success, Marlene grimaced and glanced bashfully at Lily, who had been watching the spectacle with amusement.

"Actually… would you mind? You're not very big, but I 'spose if we both sit on it, we might be able to get it closed."

Lily, always eager to help, walked over to Marlene's bed, and climbed on top of the trunk next to her roommate.

"On three! One…two…three!" Marlene cried, and the two witches bounced with all their might on the luggage below them.

 _Click_

"YES! Brilliant, Lily! Thanks!" Marlene exclaimed as the trunk finally shut.

The two Gryffindors climbed off the luggage, and Lily headed back towards her four poster, suddenly feeling very sleepy. She blamed it on all the delicious food she'd eaten.

But just as Lily was climbing into bed, Mary burst into the room looking flustered and irritated.

"Lily, I hate to ask this of you, but that nasty bloke from Slytherin is in front of the Fat Lady, and he wouldn't stop harassing me until I promised him I'd tell you that he wants to talk to you," Mary blurted out.

At her roommate's words, Lily's stomach flip-flopped and suddenly, she no longer felt content and sleepy, but nauseous and angry.

"I'm sorry Severus was bothering you, Mary, but I'm not going to talk to him," Lily replied stubbornly. There was no chance in hell that she was going to march through the common room in her nightgown to talk to the one person who had hurt her worse than all others— even Petunia.

Mary sighed, as if she'd been expecting this reaction.

"He told me you'd say that. He also told me to tell you that if you don't come speak to him now, he'll spend the night outside the portrait hole so you'll be forced to talk to him when you leave for the train tomorrow."

Mary looked sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but Lily knew this wasn't her fault. It was Severus's.

"Fine. I'll speak with him," Lily muttered as she quickly got out of bed and headed towards the door. Della and Cassie made a start to follow her, but Lily quickly stopped them, "No, I need to do this on my own. Trust me, this won't be a long conversation."

And with that, Lily was out the door and descending the spiral staircase.

Thankfully, there were only a few stragglers left in the common room, and to Lily's immense relief, none of them had messy black hair and glasses. This relief, however, was quickly replaced with dread as Lily climbed through the portrait hole and came face-to-face with her former best friend.

Severus looked even more pale and sickly than he usually did. He stood awkwardly in front of the Fat Lady in a pair of worn plaid pajamas. Next to him, on the floor, was a pillow and a jade green blanket. Mary hadn't been lying about his sleeping arrangements.

Awkward silence fell between the pair of former friends. For Severus, seeing Lily brought both instant relief and immeasurable guilt. For Lily, seeing Severus brought a fresh wave of pain, but also a growing sense of anger.

It was Severus who spoke first.

"Hello, Lily."

"Evening, Severus."

The use of his first name instead of his nickname stung Severus and only served to remind him of how badly he'd messed up.

"I'm sorry," he muttered lamely, barely able to look Lily in the eyes.

Lily could feel her heart breaking all over again with Severus's words, and for a split second, the witch almost considered forgiving him. But the thought was fleeting, and it was instantly replaced with the chilling memory of her former best friend calling her a Mudblood.

"I'm not interested," Lily replied coldly, trying to sound as firm as possible. She refused to allow him to come crawling back after hurting her in the worst, most personal way.

"I'm sorry!" Severus said again, this time louder.

"Save your breath," Lily shot back, her resolve growing with every second. "I only came out because Mary told me you were threatening to sleep here."

"I was. I would have done. I never meant to call you a Mudblood, it just —"

"Slipped out?" Lily cried, anticipating his next words. She regarded the boy in front her and shook her head. "It's too late. I've made excuses for you for years. None of my friends can understand why I even talk to you. You and your precious little Death Eater friends — you see, you don't even deny it! You don't even deny that's what you're all aiming to be! You can't wait to join You-Know-Who can you?" Lily exclaimed, her face red and her small fists clenched as the anger inside her grew. How could she have been friends with this boy for so long?

In front of her, Severus stood speechless. He'd never seen Lily get this angry at him before.

"I can't pretend anymore. You've chosen your way, I've chosen mine," Lily muttered bitterly.

"No — listen, I didn't mean —"

" — to call me a Mudblood?" Lily said, interrupting him for a second time. "But you call everyone of my birth Mudblood, Severus. Why should I be any different?"

Lily waited for Severus to try to explain himself, but he simply stared at her dumbfounded, so with one last glare, she turned on her heel, apologized to the Fat Lady for the trouble, and climbed back through the portrait hole, leaving a heartbroken Severus staring after her.

* * *

The next morning went exactly as Lily had expected. Marlene and Mary left early with their belongings in order to spend some extra time with their friends. Lily and Cassie gathered their many copies of _Witch Weekly_ into their schoolbags for the trip home. And Della, as per tradition, was occupied throwing everything she owned into her trunk.

"Will you two help me please? I'm desperate! I can't find my baby blue clogs!" the witch whined.

Cassie and Lily rolled their eyes. Della could be quite the drama queen when it came to shoes.

"Della, I haven't seen you wear those in ages. Did you even bring them with you this year?" Cassie asked.

"Of course I brought them this year! They're only my second favorite pair of clogs!" Della wailed, practically turning over her mattress in her search.

"Second favorite pair?" Lily asked skeptically.

"Of course! My _favorite_ pair are my purple suede clogs," Della replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Aha! Found them!" the witch exclaimed, pulling out the pair of blue shoes from the crevice behind her four poster.

Lily and Cassie shot each other a look. They weren't even going to bother asking how the shoes had ended up there.

"Well, now that Della has solved her shoe crisis, let's go! We only have twenty minutes before the train leaves!" Lily said, hopping up from her bed and grabbing her things.

The other two girls grabbed their belongings and followed Lily down the spiral staircase.

"We're actually making quite good time. Last year, we only had _fifteen_ minutes to make it to the train," Cassie said as the girls lugged their heavy trunks through the halls.

"Maybe next year we'll try for twenty-five minutes!" Lily joked. "Maybe we'll even have time to eat breakfast."

"Dream on!" Della scoffed.

As the trio passed the Great Hall, they could see that it was nearly empty. Everyone was headed to the train station.

After a quick ride in the carriages, the three friends made it to Hogsmeade Station, where students were already piling aboard the Hogwarts Express. The girls found an empty compartment near the middle of the train and quickly threw their things inside. After a few more minutes, the last of the students climbed aboard, and then they were off, huffing and puffing past beautiful green pastures.

Lily always thought the trip going home felt quicker than the trip going to school, and this time was no different. In what felt like no time at all, the Hogwarts Express was pulling into King's Cross. The three girls grabbed their belongings and quickly made it off the train and onto the crowded platform.

"Do you lot see your parents?" Della called over the roar of the crowd.

"No! Not yet!" Lily answered, craning her neck to try to see through the hordes of people. The witch jumped, but she still couldn't spot anything.

"Oh look! There's mum and dad!" Cassie shouted, having spotted her parents from across the platform. Mr. and Mrs. Sweetwater were both tall, blonde, and good-looking like their daughter. Lily had always thought they looked like a family of muggle fashion models.

Cassie gave her two best friends a big hug and begged them to write her over the summer before heading off to meet her parents.

"Do you see your family?" Lily asked Della as the pair scanned the crowd.

"No… Oh wait! Yes! Damon's already found them!" Della said as she spotted her parents and little brother.

Della embraced Lily in a tight hug. "I promise the holiday will fly by, and we'll see each other again in no time!"

"I know. I'll just miss you," Lily replied glumly, filling with dread at the thought of not seeing her harebrained best friend every day. "Promise you'll write?"

"Promise."

And after one last hug, Della was off, lugging her massive trunk towards her family.

Lily sighed and scanned the crowd once more, searching for her own family. Well, parents. Petunia had stopped coming years ago.

After several minutes, Lily spotted her mother and father a little ways off, and as much as she wished she didn't have to go home for summer holiday, her heart still soared when she saw their beaming faces.

Immediately, Lily grabbed her things and rushed towards them. When she reached her parents, it was her mother she hugged first, for Lily knew how badly her mum missed her when she was at school.

"Look at how beautiful you've gotten since I saw you last!" Mrs. Evans exclaimed, looking her daughter up and down. "But are you eating enough, dear? They are feeding you enough at that school, right?"

Lily thought back to the massive feast she had eaten the night before. Her parents couldn't imagine the amount of food she was provided at Hogwarts.

"Yes, mum. They feed me more than enough!" Lily insisted with a laugh.

Mrs. Evans beamed at Lily in response and admired her daughter's beauty. Lily looked so much like her. Same dark red hair, same fair skin, same soft features. Except for Lily's eyes, those were her father's.

"Come here, you!" Mr. Evans said, pulling his daughter into a tight hug. "How's my little flower been doing? Did you do well on those exams you were so worried about? What were they called… hoots, er no….howls?"

"The O.W.L.s?" Lily laughed. "I won't really know for a few more weeks, but I think I did pretty well!"

"Well, of course you did! You're the best witch at Hogwarts!" her father insisted, kissing her forehead. Lily sighed. She wished that were true.

After a few more minutes of catching up, Lily and her parents began to weave their way through the train station, heading towards the magical barrier. They had only made it a little ways, though, before Lily's mother spotted a most unwelcome face in the crowd.

"Oh, look, Lily! It's Severus and his mother. Do you want to go say hi?" Mrs. Evans asked.

Lily froze at her mother's suggestion, but quickly regained her composure. "Well… actually mum, Severus and I don't really talk anymore," Lily muttered.

"Why not? You've always been such great friends."

Lily tried to ignore the pain that seemed to radiate from her chest as she contemplated what she should tell her parents. After a few moments she answered, "We just sort've drifted apart I suppose… being in different houses and all."

Lily felt guilty for lying to them, but she also knew that they wouldn't understand the real reason she was no longer friends with Severus. She'd never explained the concept of 'blood status' to them, fearing they wouldn't let her return to Hogwarts if they knew that her being a muggleborn meant some students treated her differently.

Mr. and Mrs. Evans let the subject of Severus drop as they made their way towards the magical barrier with their daughter. They were almost there when Mr. Evans accidentally bumped into a boy with the wildest looking black hair he'd ever seen.

"So sorry, lad! Didn't see you there!" Mr. Evans apologized, patting James Potter on the shoulder.

Lily had been too caught up trying to not think about Severus that she hadn't realized she and her parents had just walked past James and his friends. When she heard her father apologize, she turned her head to see who he'd bumped into and froze.

Lily just couldn't catch a break.

"Oh! OH!" James exclaimed, realizing who the man was when he spotted Lily. "It's no problem, sir, really! It was my fault!" James stuttered, looking as flustered as an owl during Christmas card season.

"No, no! All my fault, son! No need to worry!" Mr. Evans said amicably. "I'm Lily Evans's father. Do you know my Lily?" he asked.

Beside her father, Lily looked absolutely horrified. James met her gaze and tried his best not to look too pleased with himself. He knew McGonagall said not to badger Lily, but technically, he wasn't even talking to her.

"Actually, sir, I do!" James answered brightly, flashing Mr. Evans his best smile. "Lily and I are in the same year, and we're also in the same house!"

"Really? Excellent! Lily, are you and… I'm sorry I'm afraid I don't know your name, son," Mr. Evans said.

"Potter! James Potter!" the boy replied quickly, reaching out to shake Mr. Evans hand.

"Well, pleased to meet you, James! Lily, are you and James friends?" Mr. Evans asked, turning back to his daughter, who was fuming at this point.

"Sure," Lily replied shortly, fearing "No, I'm not friends with miscreant prats" would be a bit inappropriate.

"Brilliant! I do love meeting Lily's school friends!" Mr. Evans said. "Well, it was excellent to make your acquaintance, James, but I'm afraid me and my girls must be on our way!" Lily's father said, once again shaking James's hand.

James liked the way Lily's father referred to his wife and daughter as "my girls". The young wizard was positively beaming as Mr. Evans shook his hand for the second time that afternoon.

"The pleasure was all mine, sir! Have a good summer, _Lily_ ," James said, glancing past Mr. Evans to send his daughter a small smile.

Lily, however, didn't look pleased. "Have a good holiday, _James_ ," the redhead replied quickly, practically dragging her parents away without another glance in his direction.

James sighed. He was going to miss her over the summer.

From beyond the magical barrier, Lily sighed. She was glad to be rid of him for the summer.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Back with another chapter! Hope you guys like this one! You were introduced to Mulciber and Avery as well as Venus and Vivian Crook, all of whom will play a big role in the story from now on! Also, I know the last two chapters have contained dialogue written by JK, but that probably won't happen ever again in future chapters. I just included them in the last two chapters to tell the most accurate story! So James met Mr. Evans, and Mr. Evans was definitely impressed. Hmmmm maybe he'll be mentioning James to Lily over the summer! Who knows? Personally, I'm over the moon excited to write the next chapter or two because SUMMER and MAJOR CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT! So get excited! Pretty please follow and review! xoxo


	5. Summer '76

**Can't Buy Me Love**

By: liliesandantlers

 **Chapter 5: Summer '76**

* * *

It had only been a week since school let out, and Sirius Black was already having the worst summer of his life. And _that_ was saying something.

For starters, his mother, who was never pleased with her eldest son, had been nagging him about the O.W.L.s since he got off the train at King's Cross.

"Do you suppose you passed _any_ of your exams, Sirius?"

"The Blacks have always received high marks, and you'll be sorry if you let us down."

"I told Kreacher to keep an eye out for the Hogwarts owl, so don't even think about trying to hide your results."

And then there was Sirius's father, who only spoke to his son when he wanted to critique him.

"You need to cut your hair."

"Stop playing that muggle music in my house!"

"Bathe yourself, you smell like a dog."

And to top it all off, Sirius's younger brother, Regulus, appeared to have made it his sole mission in life to get his older brother in as much trouble as possible.

"Mum, Sirius was dueling Edgar and Damien in the corridor."

"Dad, Sirius is playing his muggle music again."

"Mum, Sirius swore at Kreacher."

Determined to avoid his parents and prat little brother at all costs, Sirius had holed himself up in his bedroom for the first week of summer holiday, only coming out to eat and use the loo.

It was horrible to say the least. Even worse than spending his last week at school in the Gryffindor common room. At least at school he had his friends. At home, all he had to keep himself company was his record player and many copies of _PlayWitch_.

With a sigh, Sirius reached over and lifted the needle off the record that was playing, cutting off the voices of John Lennon and Paul McCartney. From his spot in bed, Sirius watched as the sun slipped past the horizon, drenching the room in darkness. It was long past dinnertime, and the boy's stomach ached with hunger. He had chosen not to eat with his family that evening. Between his mother's incessant scolding and his father's backhanded comments, meals weren't exactly enjoyable experiences in the Black household.

Hoping that his parents had retired to their bedroom for the evening, Sirius slowly got out of bed and slipped out of his room. As quietly as he could, he crept down the many staircases of Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place (making certain to avoid the squeaky steps), until he reached the basement, where he tip-toed into the kitchen.

Being careful not to alert Kreacher of his presence, Sirius rummaged through the pantry and found some bread and apples. Taking his makeshift meal into his arms, he slowly made his way back up the first flight of stairs, and he was just passing the dining room on his way towards the grand staircase when he heard something that made him freeze.

" _Lumos_."

Sirius dropped one of the apples he had been holding as his mother illuminated the dark space with light that poured out of her sinister-looking wand. Walburga Black sat at the dinner table with a glass of wine and a plate of cold Shepherd's pie.

She didn't look pleased.

"Oh. Hello, mother." Sirius mumbled as he picked up the bruised apple off the floor.

"You didn't eat dinner with us."

"I wasn't hungry."

"Really? The food in your hands betrays you." Walburga replied coldly, sending her son an icy glare.

"Sorry. Allow me to correct myself. I wasn't hungry enough to eat with _you_ ," Sirius spat.

Walburga had looked displeased before, but she looked positively insulted now. The witch stood from her spot at the dinner table and took a step towards her son. Sirius didn't even have time to react before her cold hand whipped across his face, leaving a small red handprint on his cheek.

"First, you waste the food that your father and I paid for, and now you stand before me and insult me? Anything you have to say for yourself?" Walburga hissed.

"Yes, actually," Sirius replied, his cheek throbbing with every heavy breathe he took, trying to control his anger. "I'm going to James's house tomorrow. Hope you don't mind."

The boy turned from his mother and began to march up the grand staircase.

"Don't walk away from me when I'm speaking to you, Sirius!" Walburga screeched, pointing her wand at her son. With a quick _flick,_ Sirius was turned roughly around so he was facing his mother again.

"You will not be going to see that Potter boy tomorrow! I've been selfish and allowed you to visit him in the past to get you out of the house, but no more! I refuse to allow any son of mine to spend time with muggle-lovers like those blasted Potters!"

"Like hell I won't! I'm going, and you can't stop me!" Sirius shouted, growing angrier by the second.

"I can, and I will! You're already an embarrassment enough to the family, and you will not bring more shame on this house by continuing to fraternize with blood traitors like Fleamont and Euphemia Potter! As long as you live under this roof, you will not be visiting that family!" Walburga screamed.

Sirius took a few steps down the staircase and stopped when he was eye-level with his mother.

"Fine, then. I just won't live under this roof anymore."

Walburga screwed up her face and laughed cruelly at her son's words.

"Oh, and where do you suppose you'll go?" she sneered.

"I don't know, and I don't care! Sleeping on the streets would be better than living with this family!" Sirius shouted, throwing his rations onto the floor at his mother's feet.

Before Walburga could hold him any longer, Sirius bolted up the stairs, spewing profanities the entire way.

"Stupid fucking house!"

"I'll be damned if you ever see me again!"

Sirius made it to his room and threw the door open. He grabbed his school trunk and quickly began throwing things inside: clothes, records, pictures. In a matter of minutes, everything Sirius valued was in the trunk. With one very final glance around his room (he had no intention of ever seeing it again), Sirius grabbed his wand and headed back down the stairs.

Orion and Regulus had overheard the fighting and joined Walburga in the entrance hall. As Sirius descended the grand staircase, he took in the sight of his family huddled together in their black silk pajamas: his younger brother, whom Sirius could've liked had he not fallen into the ways of blood purification, his father, of whom the best thing Sirius could say was that he kept his criticism short and to-the-point, and lastly, his mother, whom Sirius doubted ever really loved him.

Sirius descended the last step on the staircase and paused in front of his family.

This was it.

He was leaving.

"Well, I don't have a lot to say so… good bye." Sirius muttered angrily, turning and taking a few steps towards the front door.

"Wait."

Sirius stopped and glanced back at his mother.

She looked as if she were on the brink of a colossal tantrum.

"I know I haven't been the best mother to you, but I did the best I could with the poor excuse for a son I was given. But so help me, Merlin, if you walk out that door, that's it! You will never step foot in this house again! You will no longer be a Black! You will no longer be a part of this family!"

Sirius looked at the miserable, cruel witch for the last time in his life. It made him sad that this was the only mother he'd ever know.

"I haven't been a part of this family in a very, very long time. Goodbye, mother."

And Sirius turned the doorknob of Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place and stepped out into the warm summer night, closing the door on his family and the first sixteen years of his life.

He didn't know it, but his mother was screaming, and she was on her way towards the family tapestry in the drawing room.

With a sigh, Sirius made his way off the front stoop and headed down the streets of London, feeling remarkably free, but also the tiniest bit empty.

The runaway wizard only made it a few meters before the Knight Bus picked him up.

"Where to?" the conductor asked.

"Potter Manor, North Nibley, Gloucestershire." Sirius replied, tossing himself down onto the first available bed. The conductor nodded and the bus took off, speeding through the streets of London.

Sirius closed his eyes and tried to get some rest, but it was difficult due to the continual swaying and swerving of the bus. However, after a while, exhaustion overtook the boy, and he fell deep asleep.

When he woke, the conductor was tapping him on the shoulder.

"We're here. That'll be eleven sickles."

Sirius handed the man his money and then grabbed his trunk and made his way off the bus. As soon as his feet hit the ground, the bus was out of sight, leaving Sirius alone in front of the massive house before him.

Potter Manor was an enormous English country house covered in ivy and surrounded by beautiful gardens. To Sirius's right, James's Quidditch hoops loomed in the dark on the east lawn. To his left, Euphemia's small grove of pear trees swayed in the summer breeze. Even at night, Potter Manor invoked a sense of wonder. It was Sirius's favorite place on Earth apart from Hogwarts.

Lugging his trunk behind him, the boy traipsed across the moonlit grounds until he stood directly below James's bedroom. He picked up a small rock and threw it at his best friend's window, hoping desperately that James was still awake. After several tosses, a messy head of black hair appeared.

"Blimey, Padfoot is that you?"

"Yes, you blind git! Now let me inside!"

Sirius walked to the front door, and after a few minutes, James greeted him and let him inside.

"I didn't wake your parents did I?" Sirius whispered as the pair crept quietly through the mansion.

"No. They went to bed ages ago." James replied. As he helped haul the heavy trunk up the stairs, James noticed his friend was wearing pajamas. "Padfoot, what are you doing here?"

Sirius paled a bit and mumbled, "Long story."

The boys made it to James's room and sat Sirius's trunk by the door. James lit the lantern on his nightstand and flopped onto his bed.

"So are you going to tell me why you're here or will I have to wait to read about it in the _Daily Prophet_ tomorrow?" James teased.

Sirius grimaced and perched on the edge of his friend's bed. "Don't worry. I didn't go and get myself in trouble with the Ministry."

He tried to sound nonchalant, but James saw right through the charade.

"Mate, what happened?"

Sirius sighed and dropped onto the bed beside his friend.

"I left."

"Come again? Left where?"

"Isn't it obvious? Home. I left."

Heavy silence hung between the two friends as James absorbed Sirius's words. Neither knew what to say, so the pair simply stared at the ceiling together. Fleamont had enchanted it years before. By day, all one saw was a simple coat of beige paint, but at night, the ceiling transformed into a beautiful night sky studded with stars.

James and Sirius lay in silence for a while, taking in the constellations above them.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really."

"I think you should talk about it."

"What do you want to know?"

"Everything. Why'd you leave?"

Sirius tried to ignore the pit in his stomach, so he focused his attention on the Canis Major system above him. The star he was named for shone brighter than all the others around it.

"I suppose I was just fed up. I hadn't eaten dinner, and my mother got mad at me; said I couldn't come to your house anymore, insulted your parents. It was that on top of everything else," Sirius mumbled, refusing to look at James. "I just couldn't take it anymore. I couldn't stay in that damned house any longer; listening to my parents boast about their perfect son, Regulus, while they harassed me every chance they got. It was unbearable. And then my mother slapped me, and the next thing I knew, I was packing everything I could fit into that stupid trunk."

"I'm sorry," James muttered lamely.

"No need to be sorry. Not your fault."

The two friends sat in silence for a while longer, staring at the stars above them. From the corner of James's eye, he almost thought he saw a tear fall down the side of Sirius's face.

"Sorry that I woke you up, mate. I promise I'll only be staying tonight, and in the morning I'm going to try to write Andromeda and see if she'll take me in for a while. Could I use Ardor tomorrow?" Sirius asked, referring to the Potter's owl.

When his question was met with silence, Sirius risked a glance at James, only to find that his friend was staring at him as if he had three heads.

"What?"

James laughed. "You don't seriously think my parents are just going to let you leave, do you? You'll be staying with us."

Although he'd never admit it, Sirius's heart soared at his friend's words.

"Are you sure, Prongs? I don't want to bother your parents. And I don't think Andromeda would mind."

In all honesty, Sirius had no idea if Andromeda would let him stay with her. He hadn't spoken to his cousin in years seeing as she was quite literally burned off from the family. The last thing he had heard about her was that she had given birth to a baby girl some time back.

James merely rolled his eyes. "Padfoot, my parents have had a room ready for you since Third Year."

Sirius couldn't help but grin. "Really?"

"Of course. You're a part of the family, mate." James said. At his own words, a thought popped into his head. "Sirius?"

"Yeah, Prongs?"

"I don't know if you'd want to— you really don't have to or anything— but if you wanted—"

"Spit it out, mate!"

"I guess I just wanted to say that if you wanted to start going by Potter from now on that'd be okay," James said quickly, afraid he might've overstepped a boundary. Sirius had only just left home, and James didn't want him to think he was being forced into more change.

Sirius looked shocked at his friend's suggestion, but he smiled after a few seconds. "Really? Hmm… Sirius Potter. Doesn't sound too bad!"

"So you'll do it then? You'll take our name?" James asked excitedly. Sirius had always been like a brother to him, but this would make it official.

Sirius grinned with delight at the prospect of a future free from the weight of the Black name, but his thoughts of freedom quickly dissipated. Sirius knew it would never be that simple. He'd be a Black until the day he died.

"I want to, but I can't." Sirius mumbled. Beside him, James's smile faltered. "Believe me when I say that nothing sounds better than severing ties with my family, but I know that's what my mother would want. She said it herself. She told me that I was no longer a part of the family. As much as I want to be rid of her forever, I can't give her what she wants. I want the Black name to mean something more than just blood supremacy and prejudice."

James was disappointed, but he understood. Sirius's family was far more complicated than his own.

"It's alright, Pads. Don't worry about it."

Sirius grinned mischievously. "Plus, if I changed my name then what would the girls think? The Black name has a reputation around school, and I'm not about to throw it away just so I can hold hands and wear matching jumpers with you."

The boys laughed, and James was struck by the fact that this was going to be his life from now on: living with his best friend. Of course, he was used to rooming with Sirius at school, but not at home. James realized that Potter Manor would probably never be a peaceful place again.

"Padfoot?" James asked after a few minutes.

"Yeah?"

"Are you scared of what will happen now that you've left home? So much is going to change."

Sirius thought it over for a few seconds before answering.

"Surprisingly, not really. I suspect the worst of it is over. I mean I've already found a new home here with you lot. But I reckon I've never been very afraid of change," the boy answered, his eyes alight with the reflection of the stars above him. "Why do you ask? Are you afraid of change?"

"I dunno, maybe," James whispered.

Sirius gave him a questioning look. There was more that his friend wanted to say.

"I've been doing a lot of thinking recently, and I'm not so sure I want to take over my father's company," James admitted.

Sirius looked surprised at his friend's confession.

"Really? You've always talked about inheriting your dad's business. What made you change your mind?"

At his friend's question, James turned a bit red.

"To be honest, it was what Mulciber said in the corridor last week."

"What did he say? All I can remember is the look on Vivian's face when I hit Avery with a Bat Boogey hex."

"He said that I wasn't doing anything for muggleborns, and I think he's right. What's so noble about selling hair product?" James asked. "I'm proud of my dad for everything he's done, but I want to do more with my life. I want to make a difference."

"And how do you plan on doing that?" Sirius asked.

"I think I'd like to be an Auror someday." James replied, a wide grin breaking out on his face.

"Really? That's excellent, mate, but it's not easy to get accepted into those programs. And it's not lighthearted work."

"I know, but I really want this. I feel like this is what I'm supposed to do."

Sirius smiled. He could see already how passionate his best friend was about this. And when James Potter wanted something, he got it.

"Well, then you'll be the best bloody Auror the Ministry's ever seen!" Sirius said, climbing off James's bed.

"You really think so, Padfoot?" James asked, sitting up.

"Yeah, I really think so, Prongs. Now which room's mine? I'm bloody exhausted." Sirius said as he lifted his trunk.

"Down the hall. It's the door beside the painting of my grandmother."

"Thanks again, Prongs. Good night," Sirius called as he stepped out the door.

"Night, Padfoot!" James said as he took off his glasses and blew out the lantern on his nightstand.

Sirius was halfway down the hallway when a thought occurred to him. He placed down his trunk and headed back to James's room. The door was still cracked open.

"Prongs?" Sirius asked, poking his head in the door.

"Yeah?"

"Does the sudden interest in becoming an Auror have anything to do with a certain muggleborn witch with red hair?"

James was glad it was dark, because his face turned bright red at his friend's question.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

* * *

When James awoke the next morning, he almost forgot about his encounter with Sirius the night before. In fact, he didn't remember until he passed by Sirius's new room on his way to breakfast.

"Padfoot!" James shouted as he threw open his friend's door. Sirius was fast asleep under the deep red covers. "Pads!" James exclaimed, walking over to his friend's bed and shaking him.

"Wha-what?" Sirius cried, waking with a start and looking around him frantically. He had forgotten that he was at the Potter's house, but he relaxed when he saw his surroundings.

"It's time for breakfast!" James replied, throwing the sheets off his best friend.

"But I want to go back to bed! I'm not even hungry," Sirius mumbled, pulling the sheets back over his head. In actuality, Sirius could feel his stomach grumbling, but he was still nervous to confront Mr. and Mrs. Potter. James had assured him that his parents would be happy to take him in, but what if they weren't? Sirius didn't know if he could handle that rejection.

"Troll shit! You're always hungry! C'mon I can smell mum's cinnamon rolls!" James said, tugging on Sirius's sheets.

"Well… alright. But only because I love your mother's cinnamon rolls!" Sirius groaned as he rolled out of bed.

The two boys made their way downstairs and into the dining room where James's parents were sitting and reading the _Daily Prophet_. Fleamont and Euphemia Potter were old enough to be James's grandparents, but they had a sense of youthful enthusiasm about them that was contagious.

"Merlin! Sirius is that you, sweetheart?" Mrs. Potter cried as she spotted her son and his best friend over her cup of tea. The graying witch hopped up from her spot at the dinner table and rushed over to give Sirius a hug and kiss on the cheek.

"Hi Mia," Sirius replied, feeling more comfortable in Mrs. Potter's embrace than he ever had in his own mother's.

"Sirius, dear! What happened to your cheek? Are you alright? Your mother didn't do this did she? Oh, I will have a word with that woman if I hear that she's been slapping around on you!" Mrs. Potter cried as she noticed the red mark on Sirius's cheek.

"Euphemia, darling, relax! I'm sure Sirius and James were just wrestling around or playing a rough game of Quidditch! No need to get yourself into a dizzy over the boy!" Mr. Potter insisted as he smiled warmly at Sirius from his spot at the head of the table.

"Good morning, Fleamont." Sirius greeted as he sat down beside James.

"Morning, Sirius. Cinnamon roll?" Mr. Potter asked, holding out a tin of the warm pastries. Sirius hungrily took two.

James's mother returned to her chair and sipped at her tea.

"I must say this is a pleasant surprise, Sirius. We didn't even hear you come in last night!"

"Sorry about that. Got in a bit late." Sirius mumbled, as he stared at the plate in front of him.

"Nothing to be sorry about, dear! Always a pleasure to have you! But is everything okay? It's not like you to come by so late." Mrs. Potter said as she sipped at her tea worriedly.

Sirius began to mutter an excuse, but James cut him off.

"Sirius ran away from home last night, and he's going to be living with us from now on. He doesn't want to ask you about it because he thinks that you won't want him, but I've already told him that's rubbish." James blurted out from his spot beside Sirius.

At their son's outburst, Fleamont and Euphemia went wide-eyed.

"Sirius, dear! Are you alright? What happened?" Mrs. Potter exclaimed, placing her tea cup on the mahogany table.

"I guess I just couldn't put up with the family anymore," Sirius mumbled.

"Sirius, James is right. You'll be staying with us, and I don't want you to think for a second that you're being a burden. We want you here! You know Mia and I have always thought of you as a second son!" Mr. Potter said, reaching across the table to pat Sirius on the back.

"Oh yes! And I always wanted another son!" Mrs. Potter cried, looking positively pleased.

"What? Something wrong with the one you already have?" James teased.

"Oh hush, sweetheart. You know I adore you!" Mrs. Potter replied, pushing the tin of cinnamon rolls towards James.

Sirius smiled at the scene in front of him. He couldn't imagine belonging to such a wonderful family. It seemed too good to be true.

"Are you sure it's alright for me to stay here?" Sirius asked, hardly believing that a family as normal as the Potters would want a runaway from the house of Black to live with them.

"Of course, my boy! What? Do you think we don't have enough room for you?" Mr. Potter joked as he gestured to the massive house surrounding them. The Potters had more than enough room for all of James's friends.

"Thanks, really. I mean it. I'll try to not cause too much trouble around here," Sirius said as he bit into one of Euphemia's warm cinnamon rolls.

"I'll believe that when I see it!" Mr. Potter replied with a wink, picking up his paper and resuming his reading as if nothing had changed, as if he hadn't acquired a son over breakfast.

James and his mother did the same, going about their morning as if taking in runaways was an everyday occurrence. The group chatted and ate their breakfast, but it was mostly the Potters that did the talking. Sirius was content to merely sit back and listen to his new family. He felt like the luckiest wizard in all of Britain.

* * *

The summer holiday started off on a sour note for Lily. Upon returning home from King's Cross, the redhead found that her older sister, Petunia, had begun to store some of her things in Lily's room.

"It's not like you're here during school! And besides, it's not my fault I have so many things. I needed a second bedroom!" Petunia had cried when her younger sister confronted her.

After a long argument that involved Lily threatening to toss Petunia's dreadful peach sundresses out the second-story window, Mr. and Mrs. Evans intervened and demanded Petunia remove her belongings from her sister's room.

Although Lily was glad to have gotten what she wanted, this proved to be a shallow victory because Petunia was nastier than ever after the incident. She insulted Lily every chance she got, whether that meant whispering a cutting remark during dinner or poking her head in Lily's room to remind her just how abnormal she was.

And on top of Petunia's dreadfulness, Severus had stopped by the house three times in July hoping to speak with Lily. Mrs. Evans was gracious enough to lie for her daughter and told him that she wasn't home, and eventually Severus got the message: Lily was home, but she wasn't going to speak to him.

Even though Severus stopped coming around, Lily still thought of her former best friend and their falling out frequently. In fact, it seemed to Lily that if she wasn't being harassed by her older sister, she was being reminded of Severus and the incident at the lake. And although Lily was getting more and more used to the idea of no longer being Severus's friend, the memory of the aftermath of the O.W.L. was still very painful and undoubtedly led her to thinking of Potter, which was never a welcome thought.

As much as she tried to avoid thoughts of the messy-haired Quidditch star, his annoying smirk popped into her head more than she would like to admit. She blamed these fleeting, unpleasant thoughts on too much time spent alone in her bedroom avoiding Petunia, but it probably didn't help that her father kept mentioning him over dinner.

"So tell me about that young man I met at the train station! James, was it? He seemed like a fine lad!" Mr. Evans had said one night at supper.

Lily, who had been trying to ignore Petunia's glares from across the table, nearly spat out her food.

"What?"

"The young man I bumped into! He said you two were friends! You've only ever mentioned those two girls that you room with, and I'd love to hear about some of your other classmates!" Mr. Evans had responded, completely oblivious to his youngest daughter's distraught expression.

Petunia rolled her eyes at the turn of conversation. Why her parents were interested in Lily's freak friends was beyond her.

"Oh, um, well…" Lily had started, unsure of how to respond. She didn't want to lie, but she also didn't want to get herself worked up by ranting about Potter's god complex. "James and I are in the same house, so we, uh, hang out together sometimes in the common room. He plays Quidditch. That's the wizarding sport I've told you about."

To Lily's horror, similar incidents kept cropping up. Unfortunately, Mr. Evans seemed quite impressed with James Potter, and he liked bringing the young wizard up in conversation.

All of these factors contributed to the horror that was July for Lily. Finally, however, in early August, the redhead caught a break: Petunia announced to the family over dinner that she was moving out to pursue a typing course in London. Mr. and Mrs. Evans were not surprised in the slightest (Petunia hadn't exactly kept it a secret that she hated Cokeworth) and wished their daughter the best of luck. But no one was as excited by the news as Lily. In fact, when the day came that Petunia said goodbye to her family, not even her sister's iciness could kill Lily's sunny mood.

With Petunia out of the house, Lily found that the last few weeks of her summer were unexpectedly wonderful. Instead of hiding in her bedroom, Lily filled her days by reading on her favorite armchair in the living room, doing watercolors with her mother, and listening to "Dancing Queen" on repeat.

"Lily dear, will you come help me in the garden?" Mrs. Evans called, interrupting Lily from her daydream. She had been mindlessly doodling in her journal.

"Of course! Coming mum!" Lily called back, placing her journal on her nightstand and jumping out of bed. Lily raced down the stairs and threw on her galoshes by the back door. Wet grass squelched beneath Lily's feet as she made her way over to her mother.

"Will you grab that bag of soil by the shed? I'm planting some mums for autumn." Mrs. Evans said as she squatted by the garden that encircled their small cottage home.

Lily did as she was told and brought the bag of soil over to her mother. Crouching down, the two began to plant the fledgling flowers.

"Sweetheart?"

"Yes, mum?"

"You know your father and I are so proud of you, right?" Mrs. Evans asked, glancing up at her daughter from underneath her visor.

"Of course." Lily replied, sending her mother a warm smile. But her mother had sad eyes and appeared as if she were on the verge of tears. "Where's this coming from?"

"Oh, I just know how awful your sister was to you at times, and I wish your father and I had done more to stop her from hurting you. We tried to talk to her about being kind, but she's just so stubborn." Mrs. Evans said as a few tears escaped her eyes and fell down her cheeks. The woman hung her head in shame as she patted down the soil.

"Mum, no! I know it's not your fault!" Lily cried, throwing her arms around her mother.

"Oh, but it is! I should've made your sister behave! You shouldn't feel ashamed because of who you are, dear! I couldn't be more proud to have a witch for a daughter," Mrs. Evans said tearfully.

Lily was surprised to hear her mother's words. She knew of course that her parents were proud of her, but sometimes she wondered if they would've preferred her to be normal like Petunia.

"Aw mum! You don't know how much that means to me," Lily said, pulling away from her mother to give her a big smile. Mrs. Evans smiled back, although she still had some tears on her cheeks.

"Sorry about the crying, dear. I just get a tad overwhelmed at times when I think about your gifts. I still can't believe your father and I made something so magical," Mrs. Evans said, removing her gardening gloves to wipe away her tears. "So tell me about your classes. What will you be taking this year?"

Lily thought back to her Hogwarts letter and her O.W.L. results. She had received an Outstanding in almost every subject, except for Defense Against the Dark Arts and Ancient Runes, for which she earned Exceeds Expectations.

"Well, I'll be taking the same classes as last year, but I imagine they'll be more difficult from now on since we'll be preparing for our N.E.W.T.S."

"Newts?" Mrs. Evans asked as she planted a chrysanthemum.

"Those are the exams I'll be taking next year before I graduate," Lily explained.

"Ah, I see… newts," Mrs. Evans mused. She smiled to herself. Her daughter's school was fascinatingly whimsical. "And what about outside of the classroom? Still friends with Della and Cassie? Have any boys caught your fancy?"

Lily blushed at her mother's question. "Of course I'm still best friends with Della and Cassie. And no, not really. To be honest, I don't think guys really think of me that way."

"Rubbish! Darling, you're the most beautiful girl at that school! I'm sure at least one boy must realize that!"

Lily couldn't help but think of Potter, who had been jokingly asking her out since Fourth Year. Lily would never understand why he did it. She supposed he thought it was funny: the great Quidditch star James Potter asking out poor little muggleborn Lily Evans. He certainly knew how much it drove her mad.

"No, I don't think so. Anyway, what do you suppose you'll do with Tuney's room now that she's gone?" Lily asked, hoping to change the subject.

"I'm not sure. Your father wants to convert it into an art room for me, but I don't know if I'll let him."

Lily's mother was an excellent artist. She didn't sell any of her work, but she enjoyed painting landscapes to decorate their home with. Before Lily went to Hogwarts, she thought the closest thing to magic she'd ever see were her mother's paintings. Lily had inherited some of her mother's artistic ability, but she'd never been nearly as good.

"Oh, please let dad do it! I doubt Petunia is going to be visiting much."

"I'll think about it. Hand me the trowel please."

Lily and her mother worked in the garden until Mr. Evans came home from work. The three of them ate dinner together, and unlike the previous sixteen years of Lily's life, it wasn't unpleasant. Petunia wasn't kicking her underneath the table or whispering insults when their mother wasn't looking. Instead, Lily was able to enjoy dinner while listening to her father's ridiculous jokes and her mother's melodic laughter.

Lily had always looked forward to returning to Hogwarts, but now that Petunia was gone, Lily was almost dreading going back to school. She loved spending the long summer days with her mother in the garden. She loved driving around dreary Cokeworth with her father, who had enough light in him to make the whole place feel sunny.

For the first time in a long time, Cokeworth was starting to feel more like home than Hogwarts.

Of course, Lily was still excited to go back. She missed Della and Cassie like crazy, and she was antsy to use her wand again. There were loads of charms she wanted to try, not to mention the potions she was itching to brew! But going back to Hogwarts also meant having to see Potter again, and all she could hope was that he had enough sense in him to leave her alone.

But after five years of attending school together, Lily had come to the conclusion that James Potter didn't have much sense at all.

* * *

"I can't believe Bulgaria lost to bloody Brazil! Wormy was right. I hate it when he's right," Sirius huffed as he sat down on the plush couch in James's living room.

"No, you just hate it when you're wrong!" James teased as he plopped onto the floor and leaned his head back against the sofa.

"True," Sirius mused. "It's a good thing then that I'm rarely wrong!"

"Dream on, mate," James said with a laugh.

In response, Sirius lightly slapped the side of James's unkempt head.

"Hey!"

"Oh get over it! I'm just slapping a little sense into you that's all!" Sirius joked, once again smacking James's head.

"Would you like me to kick some sense into your arse, Padfoot?"

"No Prongsie, I wouldn't."

"Good. Then I suggest you don't touch me."

"Fair enough," Sirius said. "So what are we going to do tonight?"

"What do you mean? We've just gotten back from the Cup! It's already dark outside! We're not doing anything!" James replied, reaching to take off his shoes.

"Rubbish! We've only got a week left until school, mate! We've got to make the days count! I say we swipe some of Fleamont's firewhiskey and take the Knight Bus to London!" Sirius cried, jumping up from his spot on the couch.

"I don't know, Pads. Dad will be barking mad if he catches us in his liquor cabinet again." James said hesitantly. "And what would we even do in London?"

"Anything you want! C'mon mate please!" Sirius begged. "You'll feel much better about this once you get some firewhiskey in you!"

James smiled. He couldn't say no to Sirius. Or to firewhiskey for that matter.

"Alright, what the hell!"

An hour later, the boys found themselves taking swigs from a bottle of Odgen's Old on the third story of the Knight Bus. They looked out the window and watched the world zoom past them. They passed jokes and laughed harder than they would've had they been sober.

"Hey, James! Did you ever hear the one about the ugly veela?" Sirius asked, leaning back against the rails of their bed.

James took a long drink from the now half-empty bottle.

"No!"

"Yeah me neither! Who ever heard of an ugly veela!"

The two boys buckled with laughter, clutching at their sides.

"Sir—Sirius!" James bellowed. "What's little, greedy, and happy as can be?"

"I don't know mate!"

"A niffler when the goblins at Gringotts take the day off!"

This went on for several more minutes, the boys taking turns sharing equally horrible jokes, until the conductor shouted that they were nearly to London. James and Sirius, still clutching the bottle of firewhiskey, stumbled down onto the first level of the bus. Just as they neared the door, the Knight Bus came to a screeching halt, and the pair had to grab onto the nearest beds so as to not go flying through the windshield.

"That'll be eleven sickles each," the conductor said.

The boys handed the man their money and stumbled towards the exit.

"See you back here in a few hours!" Sirius called as he and James stepped off the bus.

And in a flash, the purple triple-decker was gone.

"So what now, mate? You've gotten me drunk and drug me to London. What's the plan?" James asked, grabbing the bottle from Sirius and taking another long swig. He didn't know what the night held, but knowing Sirius, the more drunk James was, the better.

"No plan! No rules! We do whatever we want!" Sirius cried, admiring the cityscape around them.

"I like the sound of that, but we need a place to start. What's nearby?" James asked, looking around them. They were on a busy street in the heart of London's tourist district.

Sirius searched for something interesting, and his eyes landed on a little shop a few meters down the street.

"I've got an idea."

James turned around and followed his friend's line of vision until he saw the dingy little shop with bright red lettering on the door that read "TATTOOS".

"Wicked."

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Finally back with chapter 5! This chapter was surprisingly hard to write because I wasn't 100% sure on which parts of summer I wanted to show you all, but I'm happy with the outcome, and I hope you are too! If you like my story PLEASE leave a review and follow! Thank you so so much to everyone who reads! xoxo


	6. The Boy with the Lion Tattoo

**Can't Buy Me Love**

By: liliesandantlers

 **Chapter 6: The Boy with the Lion Tattoo**

* * *

It was with mixed emotions that Lily Evans awoke on the morning of September First.

On the one hand, Lily was thrilled to be reuniting with Della and Cassie, but on the other hand, going back to school would mean facing Sev and Potter. She was torn between feeling excited and anxious as she drug herself out of bed.

After quickly changing into a corduroy skirt and a striped jumper, Lily headed downstairs to eat breakfast with her parents before they left for King's Cross. It was quite the drive from Cokeworth to London, so they had to leave extra early to make sure they made it on time. The Hogwarts Express waited for no one.

As Lily descended the staircase, she caught sight of her mother and father waiting for her at the dinner table. A feast of breakfast food lay ready to be eaten. All of Lily's favorites had been prepared: eggs, bacon, scones, potatoes, and tea.

It had become tradition for the family to eat a large breakfast together before Lily returned to school. Mr. Evans jokingly referred to it as "The Lily Evans Eggstravaganza".

"Morning mum. Morning dad." Lily said, planting a quick kiss on their cheeks before taking her seat at the table.

"Good morning, darling. All packed?" Mrs. Evans asked, filling up her plate with scrambled eggs.

"Yep. Ready to go when you are!"

"Now, let's not rush things! We still have to enjoy our Lily Evans Eggstravaganza!" Mr. Evans said as he skimmed over his newspaper, the _Cokeworth Chronicle_.

"Of course! Mum, will you pass the potatoes?"

The three ate breakfast and chatted amongst themselves about the car ride ahead of them and how Petunia was liking London. Mr. Evans said that he thought they could make record time this year if they took a shortcut he'd heard about from a chap at work. Mrs. Evans said that Petunia told her over the phone last week that she was already excelling at typing, and she had been told she'd be a shoo-in for a receptionist job when she graduated.

Once breakfast was over, Lily helped her mother clean the dishes while Mr. Evans loaded Lily's school things into the car. After a few minutes of Mrs. Evans fussing at Lily to make sure she hadn't left anything, the three climbed into Mr. Evans's small brown Escort and headed off to London.

Everything was going perfectly well until Lily's father decided to take his workmate's shortcut.

"Lawrence, are you sure you know where you're going, dear?" Mrs. Evans asked.

"Yes, Carol, I'm sure. Martin said that this was a straight shot to London. We'll avoid loads of traffic!"

Lily wasn't sure who Martin was, but she had a feeling that he didn't know much about directions because they hadn't seen a sign for London in over an hour. The redhead glanced worriedly at her watch. They only had forty minutes until the train left, and they had no idea where they were.

"I can't even find this village on the map, Lawrence! For all I know, we're headed away from London!" Mrs. Evans said as she studied the map she'd found in the glove compartment.

"Just try to follow the route we took from the house, darling. I'm sure we'll be there soon." Mr. Evans replied confidently.

The Evans family eventually found their way and made it to King's Cross with only minutes to spare. As soon as Mr. Evans parked the car, Lily grabbed her trunk and made a mad dash towards the train station.

Lily glanced down at her watch, and it told her the time was 10:58. She had less than two minutes to make it onto Platform Nine and Three Quarters.

With her parents huffing and puffing behind her, Lily ran through King's Cross, not even pausing to make sure no muggles were watching her as she sprinted straight through the magical barrier between platforms Nine and Ten.

"Wait for me! I'm here! I'm here!" Lily shouted, running towards the scarlet steam engine, which looked ready to take off at any second.

Lily turned and gave her parents a quick hug and kiss, promising to write soon, and then she was off, jumping onto the train just as the clock struck eleven and the whistle sounded.

Lily clambered through the corridor of the train, desperately searching for Della and Cassie. She was so distracted with looking in the compartment windows that she didn't notice the young wizard walking towards her until she bumped into him, loosing control of her luggage and falling over.

"I'm so sorry! I wasn't paying attention to where I was going," Lily said quickly. When she looked up and saw who she ran into, however, the apologies ceased.

Perhaps it was just because she was on the floor looking up at him, but James Potter seemed to have gotten even taller over the summer. His black hair was as messy as ever, and he wore a massive smile as he considered the witch on the floor below him.

"No need to apologize, Evans. Need some help?" James asked, extending his hand to her.

It was then, as she contemplated the offer before her, that Lily noticed the tattoo that covered the underside of James's forearm.

"What's that?" Lily asked, too engrossed in the ink to remind James that she didn't need his help.

"Well, that, Evans, is a hand. It has a lot of uses, and one of those is helping girls off the floor," James replied cheekily, grabbing Lily by the hand and easily hoisting her up.

"I know what a hand is, Potter. I meant what's _that?_ " Lily asked, pointing to the tattoo.

Where James's forearm had previously been bare skin, there was now a large lion, paws raised in attack: the crest of Gryffindor House.

"Oh, uh, that's my tattoo. Do you like it?" James asked, his ears turning a bit red. He desperately hoped Lily wouldn't think it was stupid.

Instead of answering, however, Lily simply asked more questions.

"When did you get that? _Where_ did you get that? It's not moving, so it must not be a wizarding tattoo. But why would you get a muggle tattoo? I would've assumed that you'd think you're too good for that." Lily babbled, eyeing the boy before her skeptically. She decided that he had definitely gotten taller over the summer.

Her comments stung him, but James tried his best to not let it show.

"I got it just last week actually… with Sirius. And, uh, well we went to a shop in London. And you're wrong, I don't think I'm too good for a muggle tattoo. I think it's cool." James mumbled, running his fingers through his hair nervously.

"Why were you in muggle London?"

"Well… there may have been some firewhiskey involved, if I'm being honest," James admitted, shooting Lily a guilty smile.

But Lily was having none of it.

"Oh, so that's it? You stole some of your father's liquor and got drunk, and you let Sirius talk you into getting a tattoo, and a muggle shop was the only one nearby. Glad to see you haven't changed at all, Potter. Still as pigheaded as ever." Lily said cooly, grabbing her trunk and pushing past James to continue her search for Della and Cassie.

"Evans, wait!" James called, but Lily kept on walking, mentally scolding herself for being stupid enough to have believed for even a second that James Potter could be capable of seeing himself as equal to a muggle.

Thankfully, James didn't follow her, and after a few more minutes of searching, Lily spotted a familiar head of long, dark hair through a compartment window, and she threw open the door that contained her two best friends.

"Lily!" Della and Cassie cried, jumping up and pulling her into a tight hug.

"Do you two think you could let me put my things down before you pummel me with affection?" Lily asked jokingly, relieved to be reunited with her best mates at last.

"Of course! Sorry!" Cassie said, pulling away from Lily to help her with her trunk.

Della, however, remained firmly attached to the redhead's side.

"Lils! I've missed you so much! You'll never believe the summer I've had!" Della cried, squeezing her best friend tighter and tighter.

"Della, I'm not going anywhere. You can let go," Lily reminded her, trying to wrench the witch's arms off her torso.

"Oh, right. Sorry," Della said, releasing her friend and hopping onto the compartment bench.

"So what did you do this summer?" Lily asked, taking a seat beside Cassie, who was flipping through a book entitled: _A Wizard's Guide to the Endangered Species of Northern Europe_.

"Well, for starters, mum and I went shopping loads and loads, and I scored an insane deal on the cutest pair of platforms! And dad took me and Damien to the World Cup! It was so much fun!" Della said.

"What about you, Cass?" Lily asked, turning to the witch beside her.

"Mainly I just helped mum and dad around the house, but I was lucky enough to watch my grandfather deliver a unicorn foal! It was amazing! I'm dying to tell Professor Kettleburn about it," Cassie replied excitedly, referring to their Care of Magical Creatures teacher.

Cassie's family home in northern Britain doubled as a makeshift research facility for the understanding and protection of unicorns.

"That's brilliant! Kettleburn will be beside himself with jealousy!" Lily said, grabbing a copy of _Witch Weekly_ from Della's purse.

"So have you all heard the gossip going around the train?" Della asked excitedly.

"What?"

"Well, Marlene told me that Mary told her that Alice told her that Frank was talking to James and Sirius, and they've gotten muggle tattoos!" Della whispered eagerly.

"Really? Are you sure? What of?" Cassie asked, looking highly skeptical.

"I dunno. Marlene didn't mention that part," Della admitted, looking frustrated to be out of the loop. "Do you reckon it's true?"

"Unfortunately, I can vouch that it is," Lily sighed, putting down her magazine to look up at her two friends. "I had the great displeasure of running into Potter before I found you two, and I saw it for myself."

"What did he get tattooed?" Della asked, shocked that Lily knew a piece of gossip she didn't.

"It was the crest of Gryffindor on his arm. I'm assuming Sirius got the same thing," Lily answered, rolling her eyes.

"That's kinda cool… in a John Lennon stick-it-to-the-man kinda way I suppose," Della said, screwing up her face as she tried to imagine the ink in her head.

"No, it's not. They only did it because they stole some firewhiskey from Potter's father and got drunk. They probably regret it already: allowing a muggle to permanently disfigure their bodies."

"Oh, come on, Lily. James and Sirius can be prats, but they're not like that. I suspect they were only having a bit of fun," Cassie said.

"They probably just did it for attention," Lily muttered.

"Oh, please don't start going on about James already!" Della begged. "The school year hasn't even started yet!"

Lily rolled her eyes. "Fine, I won't. I've got to go to the prefects' meeting anyway."

Feeling a bit irked by the discussion about Potter's stupid tattoo, Lily got up from her spot on the squashy bench and opened the compartment door, heading towards the prefect meeting at the head of the train.

She was almost there when she once again ran into someone, only this time it wasn't her fault.

"Ow!" Lily cried as she fell over for the second time that day. Above her, Venus Crook wore a wicked smile.

"So sorry, Lily. Need a hand?" Venus asked, grabbing the redhead and helping her up. But as soon as Lily was on her feet, the Slytherin shoved her down again.

"Stupid Mudblood!"

"Leave me alone, Venus. I've got to get to a meeting," Lily replied coldly, shaking off the slur as she got to her feet.

"I'm afraid I can't do that. See, now that you and Severus are no longer friends, you're free game," Venus whispered menacingly.

"What are you talking about? You've always been horrible to me."

"Are you kidding me? We've let you off easy for years, Mudblood. But now that Severus is through with you, there's no one to stop us from doing our worst," Venus said, nodding her head to the compartment beside her, where the rest of her friends sat.

Lily laughed at the threat. She could handle whatever trivial bullying came her way from the Slytherins.

"I'm not scared of you, Crook. Now get out of my way," Lily said, pushing past the spiteful blonde.

"I'd watch my back, Mudblood! Hogwarts is no longer safe for your kind!" Venus called angrily.

Lily rolled her eyes and continued walking towards the prefect meeting. If there was one thing she'd learned about the Slytherins from her years at Hogwarts, it was that they were all bark and no bite.

* * *

The rest of the train ride went by slowly for James, who was still disappointed by Lily's harsh judgements regarding his tattoo. He couldn't understand why she thought he was so stuck up. Had he really acted so badly in his past years to deserve her thinking so horribly of him?

Clearly, showing Lily that he had changed was going to be a lot more difficult than he thought.

"I still can't believe you were right about Brazil winning the World Cup, Wormy. I was sure Bulgaria was going to take it," Sirius said, breaking James out of his daydream.

"What can I say? Gonzalez is the best bloody chaser in the world! There's just no stopping that bloke!" Peter replied, a look of admiration on his face.

"Second best, next to Gryffindor's own James Potter!" Remus corrected, slapping James on the back. Remus had only just returned from his prefect meeting.

James smiled at his friend's effort to cheer him up. Remus could always tell when James was feeling down.

"I dunno about that! The way I see it, a chaser is only as good as the rest of his team, which is why —" James said, turning to Sirius, "I need Padfoot to join the team this year!"

Sirius rolled his eyes at James's comment, but Remus and Peter nodded in agreement.

"Prongs, if I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times. Quidditch is just not my thing! I'm not playing for the house team!" Sirius said exasperatedly, as if this was a pretty common argument between him and James.

"Come on, mate! Just come to one practice! Hawthorne graduated last year, so the team is short a beater, and that's your best position! Just give it a shot!" James begged.

"Mate, I already gave it a shot, remember? I didn't like it, so I'm done with it," Sirius replied, referring to the short period of time he was on the team in Third Year. "I don't mind practicing with you in the summer to keep you sharp, but that's it! I'm not playing!"

"Fine. I suppose I'll find someone else to replace Hawthorne. You'd be rubbish anyway. Probably try to talk to girls in the stands during matches," James teased.

"Can't say your wrong!" Sirius said with a wink, grabbing the newest issue of _PlayWitch_ from his trunk.

The boys filled up the remaining hours of the trip with games of Exploding Snap, and Peter even taught them how to play Poker with a deck of Self-Shuffling Cards. By the time the Hogwarts Express pulled into Hogsmeade Station, Remus had won four galleons, five Chocolate Frogs, and three Sugar Quills. He was a natural.

"Full house!" Remus announced, tossing down his winning hand as the rest of the boys groaned. The werewolf gleefully collected his winnings from the center of James's trunk, which had been turned into a makeshift poker table.

"Shit!" James swore.

"Blimey, Moony! You're robbing us!" Sirius exclaimed.

"We should've stuck to Exploding Snap," Peter grumbled as he watched Remus collect the bounty of sweets into his rucksack.

The four best friends made their way off the train, and headed towards the carriages. They climbed aboard one with Frank Longbottom and Alice Edwards, two Gryffindors in the year above them.

"Can I get another look at your tattoos?" Frank asked, looking to James and Sirius excitedly.

The two friends nodded and held out their arms proudly.

"Wicked. I love them!" Frank said, eyeing the ink longingly. "Where'd you get them?"

"A shop in London!" Sirius answered.

"Oh, Frank, please tell me you're not thinking of getting a tattoo," Alice said from her spot beside her boyfriend. Alice Edwards was a cute witch with short mousy hair and deep brown eyes. She looked great with Frank, who had curly hair and a kind smile.

"Come on, Alice! It'd be so cool!" Frank pleaded.

"You didn't let me finish!" Alice said with a devilish gleam in her eyes. "Please tell me you're not thinking of getting a tattoo _without me_!"

Frank smiled and threw his arm around his girlfriend.

"Frank, I don't know how you managed to get the one cool girl in school to date you," Sirius joked.

"Trust me, mate. I don't know either."

"So have you two considered what you might want to pursue after graduation?" Remus asked, as the carriage pulled itself towards the castle.

"Well, as long as we score well on our N.E.W.T.S., we think we're going to apply for the Auror program at the Ministry," Alice said, smiling at her boyfriend.

"Really?" James asked, his interest peaked. "That's brilliant! I've been thinking the same thing!"

"You have?" Remus asked, brows raised in surprise. Beside him, Peter also looked confused.

"Yeah," James admitted bashfully. He hadn't yet told anyone but Sirius about his aspirations to become an Auror.

"Well, for what it's worth, I'd think you'd be great for it, James!" Frank said encouragingly.

"Me too!" Remus said, clapping his friend on the back.

"Same here!" Peter added.

The six Gryffindors continued to discuss their future plans (or lack thereof) until they reached the castle.

Inside, Hogwarts was just as magical and wonderful as James had remembered it. The Great Hall glowed with the light of the thousands of candles that floated above their heads. Professor McGonagall went through the sorting process with the First Years, and the feast began.

James and his friends stuffed their faces with roasted turkey legs, creamed corn, pudding, and biscuits. Every few minutes, James would sneak a glance towards a certain redhead on the other end of the Gryffindor table. Lily looked as beautiful as ever talking to the group of new First Years, no doubt giving them advice to calm their nerves. James hadn't thought that she could get anymore gorgeous, but clearly the summer had proven him wrong.

After dessert, Dumbledore stood and said a few words regarding the upcoming year. He reminded students that the Forbidden Forest was off-limits (Remus chuckled quietly to himself when this was said) and announced that Professor Kettleburn had had a "conversation" with the Giant Squid that resided in the Black Lake, who politely asked for students to refrain from throwing rocks in the water.

After Dumbledore's speech, the houses were dismissed, and everyone exited the Great Hall, prefects leading the way.

"Follow me, First Years! Gryffindors this way, please!" Lily called from the front of the crowd.

"Better catch up to Evans, Moony. You don't want to be on her bad side, trust me," James said to Remus, who was still in the back with his friends.

Remus shot James an apologetic look before rushing to catch up with Lily.

Eventually, James, Sirius, and Peter made it to the portrait of the Fat Lady and muttered the new password, Snallygaster. They met up with Remus in the common room and headed upstairs. When they started Hogwarts, the marauders had had another roommate, Thomas Westenberg, but at the end of First Year, Thomas had requested to switch dorms, so he now roomed with the other Gryffindor boys in their year. Apparently, Thomas hadn't appreciated being kept up all hours of the night listening to his roommates' shenanigans.

James brushed his teeth and crawled into bed, exhausted at the thought of the long day before him tomorrow. He had a special request he needed to run past Professor McGonagall, and he wasn't sure how she was going to take it.

The Gryffindor let out a big yawn and rubbed his eyes. James was so tired that even Sirius and Peter's senseless bickering over whose hairbrush was whose couldn't keep him up, and he drifted off into a deep sleep.

* * *

James awoke early the next morning to head out onto the Quidditch pitch before breakfast. The wind whipped his face, waking him up far better than any cup of coffee. He flew around the field on his broomstick, tossing the quaffle through the hoops at either end of the pitch. After an hour of practicing, he headed off to the locker room to shower, and then he made his way back to the castle for breakfast.

Sirius, Remus, and Peter were saving him a seat at the Gryffindor Table in the Great Hall. Sirius and Remus bid him good morning as he sat down. Peter was too absorbed in his biscuit to say hello.

"How was the pitch this morning?" Remus asked, passing his friend a platter of sausages.

James scrapped a couple onto his plate. "Good. I was working on some new maneuvers. If Gryffindor is going to have any chance of beating Slytherin for the Cup this year, I've got to be on my best game. I reckon I ought to be scoring at least twelve times a match." James said, taking a bite out of a biscuit.

"Mate, you're obsessed you know that, right?" Sirius teased. "You should be putting your time towards far more important things, like admiring how good Della Westwood looks in her uniform this morning."

The four friends followed Sirius's gaze to the entrance of the Great Hall, where Della was walking in, followed by Cassie and Lily.

"Looking good today, Westwood!" Sirius called.

"I know, right?" Della replied, sending Sirius a wink.

James rolled his eyes. Sirius and Della were two of the most flirtatious students in school, and they fed off of each other's antics.

While looking in the direction of the three girls, James made eye contact with Lily, whose expression seemed to change from sunny to sullen in a matter of seconds.

"That reminds me, I need to go speak with McGonagall about something," James said, breaking eye contact with Lily to collect his things.

"But mate, you just got here! You've hardly eaten!" Remus said.

James grabbed his biscuit and headed towards the large doors. "I'll see you lot in Potions!" he called.

James jogged through the castle until he stood outside of Professor McGonagall's office. Taking one last bite of his biscuit, he quickly swallowed his food, smoothed down his hair, and knocked.

"Come in."

James pushed open the door, and Professor McGonagall looked up from her large wooden desk.

"Oh, it's you, Potter. Take a seat."

James did as he was told and fiddled with his fingers until Professor McGonagall cleared her throat.

"Mr. Potter, is there anything I can help you with, or have you just come to enjoy my company?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"Er, well, yes Professor. There is something I'm hoping you can help me with. I've noticed on my schedule that I've got a free block in the middle of the day, and I was hoping I'd be able to fill it with something," James said, suddenly wishing he had brought his golden snitch to fiddle with. Unfortunately, he had left it at home. Lily didn't seem to like it very much.

"Really? Well, that's excellent, Potter. You expressed to me last year that you no longer wished to take Herbology, but if you've changed your mind, I can send Professor Sprout an owl immediately," Professor McGonagall said, reaching into her desk for a roll of parchment.

"No! I don't want to take anymore Herbology, Professor. Actually, I was hoping to fill my free block with another class."

"Which class were you were hoping to take, Potter?" McGonagall asked.

"Muggle Studies," James answered.

"Mr. Potter, as much as I appreciate your desire to broaden your education, I simply cannot permit you to take Muggle Studies! You have no prior experience with the class, and Professor Nettles will not allow you to just jump in without having taken the necessary O.W.L.!" McGonagall said.

"I don't have to take the class with Sixth Years! I'll take it with Third Years! I'll start from the beginning!" James countered.

Professor McGonagall eyed the boy in front of her skeptically.

"Mr. Potter, why are you so adamant about taking this class? Most Sixth Years are thrilled to have free blocks! And surely you couldn't be looking forward to taking a class with thirteen year olds?"

James could feel his cheeks heating up.

"I dunno, Professor. I 'spose I just want to learn about Muggles. I've realized that I don't know much about them, and I think I oughta make an effort. After all, there are plenty of muggleborn witches and wizards in our school, and I think they'd appreciate it," James mumbled.

At this confession, Professor McGonagall nodded at her pupil knowingly.

"I see, Potter. This wouldn't have anything to do with Miss Evans, would it?" McGonagall asked.

"What? No! Absolutely not, Professor! I don't know what you're talking about! This is, this is about blood… cooperation!" James stammered, his cheeks an even darker shade of red than they had been previously.

"Ah, well in any case, I can't really allow it. Students can only attend classes with peers in their year," McGonagall said.

"But, Professor please!" James begged. "Please just do me this one favor!"

McGonagall looked at the boy in front of her: his pleading hazel eyes, bird's-nest hair, fidgeting fingers.

"I suppose… I could have a word with Professor Nettles about you attending her Third Year class," McGonagall conceded with a sigh.

"Thanks, Professor! Thanks so much!" James cried, jumping up from his spot and grabbing his bag before heading towards the door.

"Potter?"

"Yes, Professor?" James asked, glancing back at his stern Head of House.

"You had better win the Quidditch Cup this year. I can't stand Horace lording it over my head."

"Anything for you, Minnie," James said with a wink.

And before Professor McGonagall could yell at James, he was out the door and down the corridor.

* * *

The first week of school flew by for Lily. Between prefect duties and the mountains of homework her teachers were assigning, Lily didn't seem to have a moment to take a break. In fact, she was so preoccupied that she had almost forgotten about her exchange with Venus on the Hogwarts Express. After all, Lily figured she didn't have anything to worry about. The Slytherins had never been kind to her before, so she figured they couldn't possibly do her anymore harm than she was already used to.

She thought wrong.

Lily had been leaving Potions when she first got the inkling that someone was following her. She glanced behind her, but saw no one.

She had stayed behind at the end of class to ask Professor Slughorn some additional questions about the properties of demiguise dandruff, so she was the last one leaving the dungeons. She shook off the feeling and blamed it on the lack of sleep she had gotten the night before.

She had only made it another few feet when she once again got the distinct feeling that she was being watched. The hair stood up on the back of her neck, but she dismissed her concerns.

 _You're just being paranoid, Lily. You're fine._

After another few feet, however, Lily was sure she could hear a pair of footsteps behind her. She stopped in her tracks and whipped out her wand, spinning around to confront whoever was stalking her.

" _Homenum Revelio_!" Lily cried.

But she never got to see who was following her because at that precise moment, another voice, a cruel voice, shouted, " _Stupefy,"_ and all went black.

When Lily finally came to, she was very disoriented. She figured she must have hit her head hard when she was knocked out. She also felt cold. Very cold. She felt as though a strong wind was blowing on her.

Slowly, for she had a pounding headache, Lily opened her eyes, and her mouth fell open at what she saw.

A crystal-clear blue sky surrounded Lily. Everywhere she looked, she saw the same cloudless Forget-Me-Not blue.

Lily looked down, and she wished she hadn't. Her feet stood on several pieces of stone that couldn't have been more than a few feet in width. A maze of towers and turrets loomed ominously below her.

Slowly, for Lily suddenly found it very difficult to move, she tried to lift her arms, but found that they were being held by her side with tight ropes. Lily then realized that something hard was digging into her back. Without having to look behind her, she knew that she was tied to the large iron mast that stood atop one of the tallest towers at Hogwarts.

Suddenly, Lily found it very difficult to breathe. Her heart started racing and she felt as if she might throw up.

 _Don't look down, don't look down._

The redhead closed her eyes and tried to focus on her breathing.

Lily tried desperately to recall how she could have possibly gotten there. Her head was pounding worse than ever, and she tried her best not to look below her. Lily was deathly afraid of heights.

With a shiver, Lily remembered the voice she had heard cursing her before she passed out. It had been a boy's voice, deep and cruel. With another shiver, Lily realized that she had heard that voice before, teasing Sev in the library when he and Lily used to study together.

Damien Mulciber had hexed her.

But surely he must've had help. He couldn't get Lily all the way up here on his own, even if he was big and burly.

A wave of dread rolled over Lily as Venus Crook's words from the Hogwarts Express whispered in her mind.

 _"_ _I'd watch my back, Mudblood! Hogwarts is no longer safe for your kind!"_

Of course. The Crook twins were in on it, and if Lily had to guess, Edgar Avery was too. She wouldn't even be surprised if Severus had helped. After all, he was one of the few people that knew that Lily hated heights.

Lily felt like crying, but she was too scared. She didn't know what to do. She couldn't move, and even if she could, she might risk falling. And she doubted that even a witch could survive a fall from this kind of height.

"Help! Somebody help me!" Lily screamed, wishing she had her wand so she could amplify her voice. Her belongings, however, didn't seem to have been brought along with her.

"Somebody please! Help!"

* * *

Back on the ground, Della and Cassie were beginning to worry. Lily hadn't shown up for History of Magic, and I wasn't like her to skip class.

"Are you sure you saw her talking to Slughorn after Potions?" Della asked.

"Yes, I'm positive! She said she'd catch up with me in a few minutes!" Cassie replied, nervously playing with the ends of her long blonde hair.

The two Gryffindors were on their way to Charms, and they had agreed that if Lily didn't show up, they were going to go looking for her.

"Do you think something happened to her?" Della asked.

"I dunno. It's hard to say. Although, if someone did try to mess with Lily, she wouldn't have gone down without a fight," Cassie replied.

"Yeah, but what if she was outnumbered," Della whispered hotly, eyeing a group of Sixth Year Slytherins that were walking a ways ahead of them, looking far to happy for Della's liking.

"I doubt the Slytherins would try anything with Dumbledore and McGonagall around," Cassie whispered back. But even she had to admit that she wouldn't put it past them.

Della and Cassie made it to Charms and took a seat near the back. They looked around and waited with bated breath as students donning scarlet and green neckties began to arrive. The classroom quickly filled up, but Lily was nowhere to be seen.

"She's not here, Cass! We need to go looking for her!" Della said urgently.

"Whose not here?" Remus asked, as he and his friends took a seat near the two girls.

"Lily. I haven't seen her since Potions," Cassie replied.

"Is Evans okay?" James asked, taking an uneasy seat beside Sirius.

"I dunno. Like Cassie said, we haven't seen her," Della answered cooly. She was getting more worried by the second.

"Maybe she's just ditching. It's what I should've done today," Sirius said as he propped his feet up on the desk in front of him.

"No, you don't understand. Lily doesn't skip class, and she told me after Potions that she would catch up with me in a few minutes," Cassie whispered, as Professor Flitwick stepped into the room.

"Wait, so Lily went missing in the dungeons?" Sirius asked, dropping his feet from the desk as a somber look overtook his features.

"Yes."

"That's not good," Sirius whispered, glancing towards the group of Slytherins at the front of the classroom.

Beside him, James tensed up as he followed Sirius's line of vision.

Lily, _muggleborn Lily,_ had gone missing in the _dungeons._

"Bloody hell. What are we still doing sitting here?" James said, reaching under his desk to collect his things.

"Mate, what are you doing?" Remus asked.

"Going to find Evans. She's obviously in trouble," James replied, getting up and heading towards the door of the classroom.

Sirius was right behind him. He knew firsthand how cruel the Slytherins could be.

"Excuse me, Mr. Potter and Mr. Black, where do you two think you're going?" Professor Flitwick asked from his stack of books.

"Sorry Professor, but I've got to go. It's important," James replied.

"Is it so important that you feel the need to bring half your house with you?"

James glanced behind him, and Remus, Peter, Della, and Cassie stood ready with their things.

"Yes?" James answered feebly.

"Well, I'm afraid class has started, and I can't permit you to leave!" Flitwick huffed.

"But Professor!" James argued.

"No buts, Potter!"

"It's really important!"

"I don't want to hear it from you either, Black!"

"We have to go!"

"Please return to your seat Miss Westwood!"

Suddenly, a very flustered looking Madam Hooch burst into the room.

"Filius, come quick! We need your help! One of the students is in trouble!"

"Stay here, students! I'll be back shortly!" Professor Flitwick shouted as he jumped down from his stack of books and followed Madam Hooch.

Naturally, the entire class abandoned their belongings and raced after their teacher to find out what all the excitement was about.

Madam Hooch and Professor Flitwick ran out into the courtyard, where a number of students and teachers were already gathered. Everyone had their heads tilted up and seemed to be staring at something in the sky. A few students were pointing and gawking.

"What's going on?" Professor Flitwick asked.

"It's Lily Evans, Filius. Someone has tied her to the top of the central tower," Professor McGonagall answered, her face a contorted mess of deep worry and hot anger.

"Merlin's beard! What do we do?" Flitwick asked, craning his neck to try and spot Lily.

"I've talked with Madam Hooch, and the two of us are going to fly up there and attempt to retrieve her, but we need you to cast a netting spell to catch her in case she falls. Do you think you can do it, Filius. It would need to be big."

James had been eavesdropping, and his blood ran cold at McGonagall's words. The Slytherins would pay for this, but first he needed to make sure Lily was safe.

"Padfoot! You brought your broom to school, right?" James asked, turning to his best friend.

"Yes, why?"

"Because I'm going to do something incredibly dangerous, and I need your help."

"Sounds like a normal Tuesday morning to me, mate."

"Excellent. I need you to summon your broomstick. We're going up there and getting Evans ourselves."

"What?" Remus asked, as he overheard his friend's words. "Prongs, I dunno about that. Maybe you should let McGonagall and Hooch go and get her."

"Moony, I have to do this. It's already decided. I can't just leave Evans up there!" James argued, whipping out his wand. Next to him, Sirius did the same.

"But the Professors are handling it! You don't have to do this!"

"Sorry, mate, but I do!" James replied. " _Accio Comet!"_

 _"_ _Accio Cleansweep!"_

Only perhaps thirty seconds later, the two broomsticks came flying towards the boys from inside the castle. Students screamed and ducked their heads as the brooms flew towards their owners. As soon as the wood touched their hands, James and Sirius mounted their brooms and soared upwards, ignoring calls from their friends and teachers.

"JAMES POTTER! SIRIUS BLACK! YOU GET BACK HERE RIGHT THIS INSTANT!" Professor McGonagall screeched.

"You two are going to get so much detention for this!" Remus shouted, but he smiled slightly to himself as he watched his two best friends climb higher and higher. James just couldn't help but be the hero.

As James and Sirius flew, they began to hear calls for help coming from the redhead at the top of the central tower.

"Please! Please help me! Someone please!"

James's stomach flip-flopped with worry as he leaned forward, silently willing his broomstick to go faster. The wind whipped wickedly through his hair.

"I'm going to try to get closer! Circle below me in case she falls!" James shouted to Sirius, who obliged and fell behind him.

James finally reached the top of the tower and came face-to-face with a terrified Lily Evans.

Her skin was red and raw from the wind, and her hair was blowing furiously around her. She was shivering and looked like she was on the verge of a massive panic attack.

"Evans, listen to me carefully. I'm going to cut the ropes, and then I need you to hold on to the mast behind you, okay?"

Lily didn't make any indication that she heard him. She merely stared forward, petrified with fear.

"Evans, I need to know you understand me. I need you to hold on to the mast behind you, okay?"

Very slowly, Lily met James's eyes and nodded.

"Alright, brace yourself," James said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his wand. " _Diffindo!"_

The rope around Lily snapped, and she wasn't prepared for the gust of wind that hit her. With a scream, Lily dropped to her knees and reached for the iron beam behind her, clutching onto it for dear life.

"Good, Evans. You're doing brilliant. Now I need you to take my hand and jump onto the front of my broom."

Lily shook her head furiously and squeezed her eyes shut.

"It'll be okay, I promise. I'm not going to drop you. Just don't look down."

"I can't do it, James."

"Yes, you can, Lily. You're stronger than you think."

After several seconds of feeling as if her heart might burst out of her chest, Lily slowly opened her eyes and lifted herself off her knees. She shook as she tried to stand, clutching dearly onto the metal beam.

Very slowly, she reached one hand out and grasped James's.

"Now, jump Lily."

 _Don't look down, don't look down._

Keeping her eyes locked on James, she jumped off the tower and felt herself fall for the slightest second until she landed on the broomstick.

The broom dipped a few feet with the impact and Lily screamed, wrapping her arms around James's torso and burying her face into his chest. Lily was sure they were going to plummet to their death at any second.

And for a few seconds, Lily thought that they _were_ falling to their deaths, but slowly she realized that the broomstick was still between her legs, and she opened her eyes, and she saw that they weren't falling: they were _flying._

Behind her, Sirius Black flew on his own broomstick. He gave her a little wave and did a loop-de-loop.

Lily removed her head from James's chest, and looked up into his face. He wore a wide grin, and the wind was blowing his messy hair back, revealing his tanned skin and happy eyes. If Lily hadn't been absolutely terrified, she almost would've admitted that he looked good.

"We didn't die."

"Excellent observation, Evans."

"You caught me."

"I told you I would."

Stunned at the turn of events, Lily returned her head to James's shoulder, too shocked to notice the close contact.

After a few more seconds of flying, the three Gryffindors reached the ground, a mob of students and faculty surrounding them.

"POTTER! BLACK!" McGonagall screamed, students parting for her as she made her way to the front of the crowd. James and Sirius held their breath as they hovered a few feet above the ground. "That was quite possibly the most dangerous use of broomsticks I have ever seen by a pair of students… but in light of your good intentions and successful procurement of Miss Evans, you'll receive only two detentions each, and Gryffindor will be rewarded fifteen points for selfless bravery."

And with not another glance towards the boys on the broomsticks, McGonagall swept away, shooing students along after her.

James leaned forward and helped Lily off the broom. Madam Pompfrey was waiting nearby to take the redhead to the hospital wing.

"Lily! Thank goodness you're alright!" Della shouted, practically knocking her friend over as she embraced her.

"We were so worried!" Cassie added, joining in on the hug.

"I'm okay, I'm okay," Lily mumbled into their shoulders.

"If you don't mind, girls, I need to be taking Miss Evans to the hospital wing. Dumbledore's asked me to look after her. You're free to visit her in a few hours if you like," Madam Pompfrey said, interrupting the reunion.

Cassie and Della pulled away from their friend disappointedly. Lily began to follow Madam Pompfrey towards the castle when a thought hit her and she stopped.

"Thanks, Potter," Lily called weakly, turning around to address the messy-haired boy.

"No problem, Evans. Feel better."

Lily managed a weak smile, feeling remarkably grateful, albeit confused by Potter's actions, before turning back around and following Madam Pompfrey into the castle.

Lily was never staying after class to talk to Slughorn ever again.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Woohoo for another chapter! If anyone reading would like to connect with me / message me on Tumblr, my name is accio-pizzarolls. My page is 100% dedicated to Harry Potter, and I like to think I post funny stuff (sometimes). I would love to talk and connect with my readers to talk about the story! Anyway, I really loved writing this chapter, and I'm happy that more and more characters are being introduced. As always, PLEASE follow and review if you like my story! Reviews are my very favorite thing in the world, and they keep me motivated to keep writing! xoxo


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